When your emotions get the best of you it can be hard to bounce back, even for the strongest of people. Emotional resilience isn’t something that comes naturally to everyone, but it’s certainly something that should be a priority.
There’s no denying life gets hard. Whether it’s a pandemic causing ongoing feelings of uncertainty, or dealing with a loss which has caused a lot of pain. Emotional resilience is something that’s achievable and can be developed over time.
Understanding Emotional Resilience
Emotional resilience can be defined by the ability of an individual to handle stress more easily. It’s about learning to take on stress in a calm, effective and manageable way.
The ability to handle this stress more effectively allows the individual to have freedom from their emotions getting out of their control. They become more adaptable to the different situations thrown their way which is a lot healthier and more productive.
You can learn more about how stress affects your health here.
Emotional resilience might not be something instilled in each and every one of us, but it’s something that can be learned. There are even some actionable steps you can take right away!
Actionable Steps to Building Emotional Resilience
Here are 10 of those actionable steps you can take to build emotional resilience and better manage your stress during tough times.
Start with a Positive Attitude
Optimism might just be a more powerful trait than you think. In fact, people who are truly emotionally resilient will go as far as to accomplish goals while still going through difficult times.
The idea is finding a balance between what is realistic and a positive attitude. It’s important to see the world from a rational standpoint, but also to remain optimistic in order to move forward. Doing the reverse will do nothing but send you the opposite way into a more negative space.
Stick to Your Morals
Your morals are an important part of who you are as they help you make judgement calls between right and wrong. It’s important to still think about others in order to help build emotional resilience and to have a moral compass when it comes to decision making.
Sticking to morals helps you overcome tough times. It’s about recognizing the morals that are instilled in us, and continuously making an effort to abide by them.
Look Your Fears in the Face
In order to deal with the situation, or the fears you are currently managing, you need to face them head on. This helps to build emotional resilience as it allows you to first recognize when the fear is no longer dangerous to you. Once this has been established, you’re better able to learn from the situation.
Facing your fears head on allows you to become stronger and learn from the stressful situation you have gone through.
Lean on Your Social Group
You might be hesitant to do so, but leaning on your social group can do wonders when it comes to your emotional strength. Family and friends are there to be a shoulder to cry on, but also to talk you through the situation at hand and help you to find a way to move forward from it.
The brain is complex, and functions much better when it has the stimulation and support of loved ones. Connection is a key element in helping to calm the mind and body and reduce stress both now and in the future.
Find Spirituality
As we mentioned earlier, sticking to your morals is an important aspect of building emotional resilience. But where do these morals come from? How do we strengthen them?
Discovering spirituality can be a big part of finding a sense of community. Having others around you who believe in what you do and support you helps to build your own strength and morals. This gives you a better foundation to strengthen your resolve.
If spirituality isn’t something you want to be a part of, look for other ways to connect with others.
Keep up with a Fitness Routine
Those who are resilient often prove to have great habits when it comes to fitness and exercise. When you keep your body strong, you are better positioned to keep your mind strong too.
Exercise can help to reduce stress, especially during times that test you. When you are able to adapt to the stress exercise brings on, you are better able to adapt to emotionally difficult times too.
Look to Mentors
Having a positive mentor is a great way to see what great emotional resilience looks like in action. When you surround yourself with positivity and strength, you’ll be better equipped to find positivity and strength in yourself.
If you’re having a hard time finding a role model or mentor to show a positive perspective on what you want to be, it can be helpful to look at what you don’t want to be. Then work backwards from there!
Keep Your Brain Active
Stimulating the brain often is one of the best ways to build emotional resilience. Why? Because those who make a conscious effort to learn and grow are able to better adapt to the information thrown at them.
When stressful information is delivered to someone who is emotionally resilient, they are able to handle it. This is because they’re no stranger to unchartered territory. Their ability to cope is strengthened by the strong, active brain that supports them.
Find Meaning and Purpose
In order to truly become emotionally resilient, it’s essential to have a purpose in life. Those who are resilient have passions, jobs, goals, and callings.
At the end of the day, it's these things that drive them forward. They maintain a constant feeling of having something meaningful in their life. During difficult times, this purpose is in the background telling you to keep on pushing.
Use Technology to Build Emotional Resilience
It’s amazing just how far technology has come. Today, there’s a technological option to help us with just about anything. This includes tools to help build emotional resilience.
One of these tools is the revolutionary Xen by Nuevana which is a technology that works to stimulate the vagus nerve.
Why stimulate the vagus nerve, you might ask? This nerve is the longest nerve of the autonomic nervous system (the system that regulates a variety of body processes that take place without conscious effort). When it becomes stimulated, mood and stress levels, sleep focus and cognition, and athletic performance can all be improved.
The ability to maintain better mood and stress levels allows you to become better equipped to build and practice emotional resilience.
The technology is simple, as Xen Headphones connect to a handheld device which generates an electrical current, stimulating the vagus nerve and helping you to feel less anxious and more tranquil. Emotional resilience then feels a lot more achievable when you are relaxed and clear headed.
Getting Started
Building true emotional resilience might not be something that can be learned over night, but with these steps you’re sure to be headed in the right direction. The key is in recognizing your need for building resilience and then seeking options to help you.
If you would like to start building emotional resilience with Xen by Neuvana, you can shop the entire Xen by Neuvana collection here. Or if you’re looking to learn more, you can take a browse through our FAQ page. Here you’ll learn when to use the Xen by Neuvana technology, how it feels to use the Xen headphones, and much more!
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