Resilience

Everyone experiences twists and turns, from everyday challenges to traumatic (= causing lasting emotional shock and pain) events throughout their lives. These can be serious health problems, workplace or financial stress and relationship problems.

We feel emotionally drained, mentally exhausted and tend to experience a sense of uncertainty. But, how do we deal with such traumatic events?

Resilience (= the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties) is one of the most important qualities that a person or an organization needs to possess to overcome stressful conditions or difficult times.

If individuals or organizations have enough capacity for resilience, they will easily

• handle the pressure well,

• respond to changes with confidence and flexibility and

• bounce back from defeat

An optimistic person with good resilience has the ability to bounce back (= to return to a normal condition after a difficult situation or event) more quickly and with less stress than someone whose resilience is less developed. So, we must try to become a resilient person to overcome difficulties whenever we face them.

Watch and listen to the podcast and answer the question below.

Which common Myanmar material is considered to be resilient?

1. teak

2. bamboo

3. jade

Now, listen again and complete the sentences with NO MORE than TWO WORDS .

1. Resilience is a useful trait that can help us manage _____________

2. One way to view resilience is to measure the amount of __________ we have, such as family and friends.

3. There is also a biological level to resilience which considers how well we can ________ our nervous systems when we are distressed.

4. So, a resilient person can soothe their body and stay ________ during times of distress.

5. Experts, such as Professor Ann Masten believe that resilience is something that we ________ when required.

6. Dr. Masten states that teachers and parents are _________ in how to deal with adversity.

7. Resilience is also a scientific term that refers to a material that can return to its _________ after being bent.

When you are ready, enter you answers into the test sheet below.