{"id":5327,"date":"2013-05-08T09:02:09","date_gmt":"2013-05-08T13:02:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/?p=5327"},"modified":"2013-05-08T09:02:09","modified_gmt":"2013-05-08T13:02:09","slug":"mastering-the-art-of-resilience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/?p=5327","title":{"rendered":"Mastering the art of resilience"},"content":{"rendered":"

We can learn to treat change as a gift instead of a setback
\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By Matthew Lapp, MS, D,<\/strong> Columnist, The Times <\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"CTColLogoMattLapp\"<\/a>Each day we encounter new challenges and opportunities, and have the ability to make new discoveries about ourselves and the world we live in.\u00a0 More and more often, people are finding both their personal and professional lives in a state of flux.\u00a0 The truth is, we can never be absolutely certain what life may present.\u00a0 During these uncertain times, maybe the only thing any of us can count on is that change<\/i> is inevitable.\u00a0 Mastering the art of resilience allows us to adapt in the face of whatever life may present us with.<\/p>\n

Merriam-Webster\u2019s defines resilience as, the \u201cability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change\u201d but my preferred definition is that of author Seth Godin.\u00a0 He states that resilience is the ability to \u201csurvive and thrive in the face of change.\u201d\u00a0 Since change is most certainly going to occur, the goal becomes to adapt to and maybe even anticipate those changes so that we can respond as effectively and successfully as possible.<\/p>\n

The question then becomes, how do we work towards creating a level of resilience that ensures our ability to thrive in the face of changing life circumstances and adversity?\u00a0 There\u2019s a simple, three step process that can shed some light.\u00a0 The first step is to obtain awareness<\/b>.\u00a0 By paying attention to what is going on inside our bodies, within our life context, and in relation to the world, we are better able to respond in an effective and sustainable manner.<\/p>\n

For example, whether good or bad, have you ever had a \u201cgut feeling\u201d about something?\u00a0 Most people can remember a time when a feeling prevented them from making a mistake or led them to a positive outcome.\u00a0 Having a general awareness about our life circumstances is similar.\u00a0 There are always messages and bits of information around us, it\u2019s just a matter of identifying them.\u00a0 The more you pay attention to your body or life experience and in the world around you, the more information you can obtain.\u00a0 Thus, allowing you to make more informed choices in life.<\/p>\n

The next step is to acknowledge<\/b> what is true<\/i> in any given situation without judgement of it.\u00a0 Lets say you have a job.\u00a0 It\u2019s not the job you aspired to as a child.\u00a0 It\u2019s not something you\u2019re passionate about or even something you particularly care for, but it pays the bills.\u00a0 Now lets imagine that you lose your job for one reason or another.\u00a0 Depending on your state of mind, you may respond to this situation in various ways.\u00a0 You could get mad, complain, or sit in a dark room thinking \u201cwhy me?\u201d\u00a0 You could go look for another job with similar attributes, or you look for job that brings you joy and happiness.<\/p>\n

In each situation what is true<\/i> is the same.\u00a0 You no longer have the job that you once had<\/i>.\u00a0 The meaning or judgement you assign to that truth is in your hands.\u00a0 You are the author of that \u201cstory.\u201d\u00a0 At this stage, the most important thing is to separate the truth from the story.<\/p>\n

The final step is acceptance<\/b>.\u00a0 For most people, this step is the most difficult but also the most empowering.\u00a0 It may be very difficult to accept changes and challenges (especially when they are unwanted!) in our lives.\u00a0 We may become angry or frustrated or resist them altogether.\u00a0 No matter, the change happened and how we respond to it will dictate our future success or failure.\u00a0 This stage also influences our ultimate resilience level.\u00a0 At this stage, we have the ability to accept the change as a gift or lesson.\u00a0 By doing so, we can gain wisdom about ourselves, and then apply that wisdom in ways that benefits ourselves and the people we care about.<\/p>\n

\"Matt\"<\/a>Even people who have experienced tragic life events, terminal illness, or the loss of loved ones have reported a profound sense of gratitude for the lessons they\u2019ve learned as a result of the event.\u00a0 Accepting that which is true allows us to move on to the next life opportunity.\u00a0 And, completing the process of AAA builds greater resilience so that the next time a life change occurs, you are better able to respond to it in a manner that produces a successful outcome.<\/p>\n

Matthew Lapp, MS, DC is the owner of Salus Chiropractic Studio in Thorndale. For more information, visit him on the web at <\/i>http:\/\/www.thorndalechiropractor.com\/<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We can learn to treat change as a gift instead of a setback By Matthew Lapp, MS, D, Columnist, The Times Each day we encounter new challenges and opportunities, and have the ability to make new discoveries about ourselves and the world we live in.\u00a0 More and more often, people are finding both their personal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5331,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,622],"tags":[2099,2098,2097,1334,2096],"class_list":["post-5327","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-health","tag-acceptance","tag-acknowledge","tag-awareness","tag-change","tag-resilience"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5327","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5327"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5327\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5331"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}