Resilience: Why We Need Help Accessing this Power

If you Google the word “resilience”, article upon article of research and commentary will pop up. Lots of “How to’s” emerge on the screen displaying strategies to build resilience. These articles seem to provide access to wisdom at the click of a button, theoretically equipping people with the necessary tools to be resilient in the face of adversity. 

This wealth of information, however, can be misleading. It is unrealistic to assume that young adults, particularly those transitioning out of foster care, can successfully cope with adversity on their own simply by throwing the word resilience on a screen in front of them and/or attaching the word to them as a population. Resilience involves managing trauma by truly acknowledging and experiencing the trauma without crumbling underneath it. Guidance and support is necessary to adopt better thoughts and behaviors and learn how to be resilient. Relying on the concept of resiliency does not equal a life free from struggle.

Youth aging out of the foster care system constantly deal with unimaginable stressors, and they often face these circumstances alone.  The pandemic further introduces intense challenges and adversity for them, as it does for many of us. Now is the time to help youth learn about and cultivate resilience. As a potential guiding force, you can help to convert these negative situations into opportunities. 

Click here to learn more about Mentorship and ways you can play an active role in making a resilient foundation possible for others.  ​

---