Resilience in psychology refers to the idea of an individual's tendency to cope with stress and adversity. This coping may result in the individual “bouncing back” to a previous state of normal functioning, or using the experience of exposure to adversity to produce a “steeling effect” and function better than expected. Resilience is most commonly understood as a process, and not a trait of an individual. Kevin B Sullivan, President, NAMI Board of Directors, talks about Resilience as "The Power Within" :
Research tells us that some people innately have more resilience than other, but also that far more of us can learn and practice our own personalized paths of resilience. There is even growing evidence that resilience is brain chemistry in action, triggers and receptors linked to how we see ourselves, what we say, what we do, and what others say and do with respect to us.
A friend of Sullivan, has lived through periods of bipolar depression. With treatment, including medications, she is in recovery but understands that her recovery is a process rather than a state of being. Part of her process has been learning to practice resilience. In her case, it is a simple mantra: "Just do, something, anything." On the darkest of day, it may not be much of anything, but for her it's always an empowering assertion of action and hope.
We all have our own personal portals to resilience. Maybe it's work or art, conversation or exercise, a familiar object or favorite place, faith in a higher power or simply faith in oneself. These are powerful therapeutic personal strategies and brain messages that work, not least of all because learned, guided and practiced resilience is something we can give. Resilience is recovery for people living with mental illness !
Power Of Positivity Brings Resilience To An Achievable Goal.
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/86502
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Point Yourself In A Positive, Empowered, Fulfilling Direction
Negative momentum can be powerful. Yet the moment you commit yourself to a positive perspective, that negative momentum is gone. Perhaps you could stop worrying and complaining about the fact that your day, your week, your month or your life has gotten off to a bad start. Use this moment right now to interrupt the pattern and point yourself in a positive, empowered, fulfilling direction.
Your past has brought you where you are, and yet it does not dictate where you can now go. Make the choice to point all of your life in the direction of your dreams. Even though you may have experienced great difficulty in getting started, choose now to be thankful for those difficulties you have gone through. Be thankful for the strength they have enabled you to build, and make positive use of that strength going forward.
This time, this moment is different, because now you're in complete control and determined to make it great.
Monday, January 2, 2012
What Is "Episode Free Emotional Stability ?"
In my e-book "Power of Positivity" https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/86502
I ask the question ..Is "episode free emotional stability " possible ?
As some of you know ,I have achieved this level for over 26 years.
However, I am not a celebrity with BP. I'm just a member of DS Bipolar Group.
I have communicated with Kay Redfield Jamison, PhD, whom most of you have read her books, about this classification. She stated in her publications, that she labels it " Functional Bipolar". She mentioned a number of celebrities who are "Functional Bipolars "....Robin Williams,Burgess Meredith,Dick Cavett,Ben Stiller.Patty Duke,Carrie Fisher,to name a few. I ask her recently, how many years of "Episode Free Emotional Stability or Functional Bipolar" does one have to acquirer to achieve this level ? I have yet to receive an answer. Perhaps, this group would care to speculate .
Perhaps, my question is a very difficult one, to answer, for all mental health providers. However,I might suggest that a couple of years is just a start of "episode free emotional stability." My pc has followed my episode over a 25 year period before they began to stabilize. That was when we started to monitor my stability (1984). He stated that as long as a true episode cycle does not occur, with in a full year period, we could label that a "episode free emotional stable" year.....I visit my pdoc once a year for review of any possible episodes. This last visit I commented that I again have not had an episode....and now it has been 26 years. I suggested this "age old question"to my pdoc... "So, possibly now I may be "Functionally Cured" ......He just smiled and said ....." Ahh, but your still a Bipolar"
I ask the question ..Is "episode free emotional stability " possible ?
As some of you know ,I have achieved this level for over 26 years.
However, I am not a celebrity with BP. I'm just a member of DS Bipolar Group.
I have communicated with Kay Redfield Jamison, PhD, whom most of you have read her books, about this classification. She stated in her publications, that she labels it " Functional Bipolar". She mentioned a number of celebrities who are "Functional Bipolars "....Robin Williams,Burgess Meredith,Dick Cavett,Ben Stiller.Patty Duke,Carrie Fisher,to name a few. I ask her recently, how many years of "Episode Free Emotional Stability or Functional Bipolar" does one have to acquirer to achieve this level ? I have yet to receive an answer. Perhaps, this group would care to speculate .
Perhaps, my question is a very difficult one, to answer, for all mental health providers. However,I might suggest that a couple of years is just a start of "episode free emotional stability." My pc has followed my episode over a 25 year period before they began to stabilize. That was when we started to monitor my stability (1984). He stated that as long as a true episode cycle does not occur, with in a full year period, we could label that a "episode free emotional stable" year.....I visit my pdoc once a year for review of any possible episodes. This last visit I commented that I again have not had an episode....and now it has been 26 years. I suggested this "age old question"to my pdoc... "So, possibly now I may be "Functionally Cured" ......He just smiled and said ....." Ahh, but your still a Bipolar"
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