Resilience Training

What is resilience training?

Resilience training is a series of programs to help people learn to cope with and grow from stress or serious life struggles.

It’s used to help disaster workers cope with the suffering they see in their work, or aid people with serious health problems learn to better navigate their challenges. But it is not just used for disasters. It’s used in everyday life when you have a setback and bounce back or shift course.

Everyone reacts to stressful situations differently. You might lose sleep or feel sad and anxious, for example. Some situations are more difficult to manage than others. Humans weren’t born with the skills needed to bounce back from every single stressor. But you can learn these skills and adapt to future situations.

Who is resilience training for?

Anyone can participate in resilience training. It’s most common among the following groups:

• First responders
• Disaster workers
• Military and service members
• Healthcare providers and caregivers
• People with chronic (long-term) health conditions
• People who experience frequent stress or a life setback

For example, disaster workers participate in resilience training because they need to respond to traumatic situations that may be difficult to witness. They may encounter physical and emotional stress after long hours, risking their personal safety to help others in need.

Another example is someone living with a chronic medical condition. It may be difficult to undergo treatments that take you away from your loved ones or your favorite activities. You may have to manage changes to your lifestyle if a condition progressively gets more severe as you age.

Resilience training programs may help you manage life events like these or any event that you’d like to adapt and learn to overcome.

What are signs of low resilience skills?

If you’ve been through a stressful situation or faced unique life challenges, you may experience many of the following symptoms. If symptoms last for more than two weeks or get worse, it may be a sign of low resilience:

• Anxiety or fear
• Increased stress
• Sleep deprivation, insomnia and daytime fatigue
• Distracted, not feeling present and having difficulty making decisions
• Stomach upset or appetite change
• Depression, grief, guilt, sadness and crying easily
• Mood changes (irritable, angry, or resentful)
• Isolation or social withdrawal
• Decreased libido
• Increased substance use
• Decreased immune response (frequent colds, coughs or other illnesses)

You should seek help from a mental health professional or a primary care physician if you have long-lasting symptoms after a stressful event.

If your thoughts are centered around death or suicide (suicidal thoughts), you should talk to someone about it. This may be difficult, but there are resources available to help you. While having a thought isn’t the same as physically harming yourself, it may be a warning sign. You can call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988. Someone is available to talk to you 24/7.

What happens during resilience training?

Most resilience training involves a face-to-face meeting with a mental health professional. Some sessions may be done virtually in an online setting.

You may meet with a provider to accumulate multiple hours of training over the course of several weeks. Follow-ups (for example, six months after completing the program) may be done to track your progress.

Resilience training is primarily designed to help people before they encounter stresses. It can also be used during or after these stresses are experienced. All resilience training programs have roughly the same goal but can vary widely in terms of structure.

You can find these programs through employers, community groups or physician referrals.

What are the objectives of resilience training?

Common themes of many resilience training programs include:

• Distress tolerance training
• Finding social support
• Identifying meaning in your life
• Learning good coping skills
• Promoting positive emotions
• Stress management
• Teaching flexible thinking

To reach these goals, you may participate in:

• Cognitive-behavioral therapy
• Emotional regulation training
• Mindfulness training
• Psychological education
• Relaxation practice
• Self-compassion and gratitude skill training

How long is resilience training?

Program time frames vary. It’s common to meet with an instructor in 60-to-90-minute sessions once weekly over several weeks to months. You’ll collect several hours of training and practice.

At the end of your course, you may choose to continue to see a mental health provider to manage or work through any additional areas of concern.

Resilience training examples

The following are examples of what disaster workers may learn how to do during resilience training and apply in the field before, during and after an event.

Before you face a stressful situation, it helps to be prepared. You can:

• Learn as much as possible about a situation before you arrive
• Stay in touch with your support network so you’re not alone
• Make a plan of what needs to be done and delegate tasks if you’re unable to do them

It can be difficult to think about yourself when you’re in the field responding to a disaster situation. It isn’t selfish to take care of your needs while also helping others. You should:

• Make time for yourself to eat nutritious foods and take a break
• Check in with others (use the buddy system) and reach out for support if you need it
• Practice relaxation techniques when you can

Coming home after a traumatic assignment and then settling back into a routine isn’t easy. To help you adjust, you can:

• Talk to a mental health professional
• Give yourself grace as things may not be exactly the same when you return
• Participate in a few activities you enjoy but limit social activities for a while to avoid overstimulation
• Only talk about what you’re comfortable talking about
• Understand it’s OK to say, “No” and set boundaries

What are the potential benefits of resilience training?

Some of the benefits of resilience training may include:

• Adapting and recovering after stressful events
• Connecting you to resources who can help you through challenging experiences
• Finding healthy ways to destress
• Reframing stressful situations to help you experience more positive emotions

A lot of famous athletes and scientists have had to overcome something significant in their lives to reach their goals — and many use resilience training to do it. Resilient people tend to have high emotional intelligence, strength and grit too. Common traits of resilient people include:

• Being flexible with your time and resources
• Being curious about the world around you
• Focusing on positivity and gratitude
• Recognizing that your greatest strength could also be your greatest challenge

What are the challenges of resilience training?

Living through a stressful life event isn’t easy. You may need to recall memories from past experiences you’d rather forget during training. This can be very difficult and emotionally draining.

In some cases, resilience training may not entirely prepare you for the unexpected. It takes a significant amount of work outside of each session to build resilience. Even with a number of hours in training, resilience is a continual learning process that develops as you grow.

How long will it take for me to build resilience?

There’s no set timeframe that works for everyone. It’s a personal journey and you set the pace. You may feel more confident in your ability to handle stressful situations after completing the training course. Others may need more time to work through previous challenges to prepare to face new ones. Your instructor can help you stay on track if you feel like you’re not meeting your goals as soon as you’d like.

When should I call my healthcare provider?

Contact a healthcare provider right away if you experience any of the following symptoms after a stressful event, especially if they linger for two weeks or more:

• Intense feelings of sadness and loneliness
• Performing self-harm behaviors or thinking about harming yourself or someone else
• Psychiatric symptoms, like hearing voices or seeing visions
• Not caring for yourself as you regularly would, like not bathing or eating
• Over-consuming substances as a coping mechanism (substance use disorder)

If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, contact 911 or your local emergency services number.