We are all resilient! The human race and civilization are resilient. This universe and our environment are resilient. Human kindness and our sense of community are resilient. Again, we are resilient.
It truly feels as if we woke up in a horrible, horrible nightmare. It’s like one day we are hustling and bustling, and the next minute, we are all at home, standing up and staring at the tv, and wondering how our lives have flipped a complete 180.
It is 100% understandable that anyone would have anxiety and stress at this moment. Our civilization has been called to war and we are fighting together to get through this.
When going through challenging times, it’s helpful to think back through all the challenging times you have lived through. Let’s take it further. Think back through all the times our country, this world, civilization, and/or our human bodies had to face traumatic times or strive to break records and push limits.
Let’s go through a few:
The Spanish Flu – This flu pandemic lasted from January 1918 thru December 1920 and infected 500 million people worldwide. It halted after those who survived developed immunity and the virus could no longer bounce around from one person to another. Now, we can learn something from history and find ways to be innovative. The city of St. Louis did just that in 1918. They started the practice of social distancing that September during the second wave of the pandemic. St. Louis began closing schools, movie theaters, bars, sporting events, and other public events. By November, St. Louis imposed a stricter shutdown, closing most businesses. The American Red Cross who made bandages, shifted their work to make face masks. The quarantine was temporarily lifted, but was reinstated back in December. After illnesses declined, the quarantine was lifted after Christmas.
If you google St. Louis vs. Philadelphia, you will see an amazing graphic that shows this flattening of the curve where towns like Philadelphia were getting hit very hard by the pandemic and St. Louis was showing much lower rates of infection. For those of you who are looking for more hope, look up how St. Louis saved several lives. You really learn the value of social distancing.
Taking this a step further, Ohio’s very own, Governor Mike DeWine and Dr. Amy Acton, are doing just that. They are taking data from the Spanish Flu along with the data across the world with the Coronavirus and learning what they can do to protect Ohio, protect the United States, and protect other countries. They are encouraging crowdsourcing and requesting more innovation. Look at Battelle, they will be able to sanitize up to 80,000 N95 masks a day. This is huge, so let’s keep it coming innovators. Ohio is flattening the curve and it’s because of excellent leadership, quick and well thought-out action, the dedication of our people to support this cause, innovation, and our resiliency.
9/11 - For those who witness 9/11, this was a terrible event in America’s history. As the news hit the airwaves, many of us were left in awe not knowing what to do. There were countless first responders on the street helping people as America clenched onto each other as we mourned our grievances together.
Now yes, this is a different type of event, but we managed through a lot of uncertainty. Although it was scary, people were putting themselves on the frontline or volunteering to help each other. It brought us together as a nation, it brought family and friends closer together, and it helped us come up with plans to protect our country.
Four-Minute Mile – Back in 1954, it was a common belief that you could not run a full mile within four minutes. Well guess what? On May 6, 1954, Mr. Robert Bannister did just that and beat the record by a second. In 1975, Mr. John Walker ran a mile in less than three minutes and 50 seconds. Now the mile record is three minutes and 43 seconds earned by Mr. Hicham El Guerrouj. What is more astonishing is that this four-minute mile record has been broken by 1400 male athletes.
Just look at this last fact, can we say amazing?! People were once told they could not do something and 1400 male athletes pretty much said, “Oh, no you didn’t”. This means we can push ourselves even farther because we are limitless and we are capable of anything.
I just shared three really intriguing facts. These facts show how resilient our country, our community, our love for one another, and our human bodies really are.
So, what is resilience? It’s the ability to bounce back, to fail and try again, to fail faster and try harder, to not give up, and to be proud of our accomplishments through these challenges, tribulations, and setbacks.
We learn so much through traumatic and challenging times. I have learned some of my own superpowers including resiliency and positivity. I never thought I would say this, but after going through my delayed fertility journey, I have to say, I’m grateful to experience this because it has taught me a huge lesson on resilience, on fighting a battle, on how to keep on going and keep on trying, on fighting my own demons and gremlins, on embracing change and owning my power, on spreading love and kindness, and on providing empathy and compassion. This journey can be traumatic; I can experience high highs and low lows; however, it can also be exciting because I believe and can see hope. I hang on to my purpose, my sense of connectedness, the ability to be creative and see opportunities. This gives me strength to keep trying because I will be a mother someday.
Hope and believing is sometimes all that you need to help you move forward. I know that I needed that for myself and it keeps me going. I choose that for myself because I know we are capable of so much more.
Identify that purpose for yourself. It may go something like this: you are strong and resilient. You see a brighter future where we have moved passed this pandemic and found solutions for the things that need a little extra attention. You also see a future where you are more connected and know that sometimes in life, it’s okay to take a pause and focus on yourself and those that are close to you.
Now, some of you have heard the famous saying by James Cameron:
Hope is not a strategy. Luck is not a factor. Fear is not an option.
So, let’s talk about this and dig deeper.
I believe in hope, but I also believe that strategy is how you become more intentional. There are things we can control and things we can’t control. Write it down. Seriously, write down what you can control and what you can’t. Once you do this, you can start putting a strategy together with the things you can control.
Luck—we can get super philosophical here, but let’s keep it as something we can’t control for now. As for my metaphysical peeps and the belief around manifestation, we can discuss this later. I will say luck is very different than manifesting and I’m sure you all know that :)
Lastly, let’s talk about fear. Fear is real, fear is scary, fear is just darn right intimidating. We all fear something, but to have a strategy on how to tackle fear can provide very desirable results. We can certainly talk about fear a little bit more and how to break through barriers through the coming weeks and months, but fear can be broken. At this moment in time, though, fear is real, and we will confront it as if we are moving forward from it.
Bringing it all together, let’s say we remove fear and luck, what do we have? We have a strategy coming from inner motivation and thoughts that become emotions, that become action, that then becomes results.
We want to fight this pandemic and save as many lives as possible. It’s time to work on these positive thoughts: we are going to get through this. That thought becomes I am hopeful and I feel realistically optimistic. That feeling of hope and optimism then becomes I am ready to do something by staying home, dropping off food for those who need more assistance, and connecting with others because you care. Lastly, your actions turn into results such as flattening the curve, more support for those who cannot leave their house, and more love and kindness because we are staying connected.
Resilience—It's powerful. You have a choice. You have the ability to choose an outcome. The outcome here is saving more lives because we are knowledgeable on what we need to do: stay home, wash your hands, choose safety and wellness, and care for yourself and others.
Before I sign off, I’d love to provide some tools to help you get through this time.
Breathe. Sometimes all you need is a few seconds to yourself to center and be present. Something super easy you can try is breathe in for four, hold for two, and breathe out for six. You’d be surprised with how much this can help. Want to take it further? Once you complete this breathing exercise, write down three good things that happened to you that day or three things you are grateful for. This will certainly boost you in a more positive and mindful zone.
Assess yourself. You have feelings and they are real. You don’t need to justify them and it’s okay to cope and tolerate. Acknowledge that and know that it may be helpful to talk it out, write it down, or work it out. Whatever you choose, know that acknowledging and releasing can ultimately help you move forward.
Look at the facts. Stay knowledgeable, but focus on the productive facts. We are hearing a lot of news right now and it’s information overload. Find your go-to resource, check in when you’re ready, and learn how you can stay productive, healthy and safe with that information. This really helps with your purpose, too. If your goal is stay healthy and protect others, getting that good information will put you in the right direction.
Find your own resilience story. When was a time you were confronted with a challenging time? How did you get through it? What was it about you that got you through that situation? What superpowers or strengths did you uncover? Once you go through this exercise, you will learn that you are much stronger and braver than you know. It also helps you to think about yourself in a much healthier way and reframe from feelings of fear and anxiety.
Stay positive. You know the desirable outcome of this story. Have hope, have strategy, know your purpose, and keep on believing good things are on the way.
Stay connected. In this world, we thrive on human connection. This can also mean being connected to God, the Universe, or some higher power. Reach out to friends and family, stay connected with your church or organization, get outside and observe nature at its best, or do whatever practice helps you stay connected.
Exercise resiliency and adaptability. Just like anything, building your resiliency and adaptability muscles takes work. Take a class, try something new, get out there and do something different. Learn about that experience, what helped you be successful or unsuccessful. If unsuccessful, what can you do to try again for a better outcome? Don’t forget to celebrate your successes!
Stay well. Lastly focus on yourself. This is looking at your mind, body and soul and taking care of the physical, emotional, mental, social, environmental, and spiritual side of you. You got this and no one knows you like you do. Listen to your body, heart and mind.
We have an uphill battle and some stats we need to push through. We may even need a little work on managing our own expectations. Regardless, I say challenge the stats, fight harder, do your part, stay home, get innovative, and show up (virtually, of course)! You are capable of anything and we are capable of everything. Let’s end this thing and show our upcoming generations how brave, fearless, and resilient we really are!
