Resilience in times of change

Change has been present in my life since I was 14 years old, and had to leave my hometown to study in the capital of Venezuela. At 19 I went on an exchange year to the United States and spent all that time without seeing my parents and siblings. I started working at 21 and at 25 I got married. Then, I left Venezuela to study for a master’s degree in the UK where we stayed for 14 years. During that time we moved 7 times and I had 3 daughters, the third of which was born during my Ph.D. studies. 

I wrote this blog from the UK, where we were brought back during the pandemic and after working 2 and a half years in the US. Now we are looking forward to moving and starting a new life in Mexico.

The only constant thing in my life has been Change, and with change comes a variety of challenges: fears, anxiety. Over time I have discovered that with each change, I restart a conscious process of activating and strengthening my resilience. Resilience is defined as the ability to recover quickly from difficulties.

In that process of empowering my resilience, I reduce my resistance to change and accept that there is nothing I can do but adapt. I have learned that resilience is nothing more than a conscious decision-making process that allows me to reach a zone of safety or a base level of mental and physical balance. That’s when I reach realistic optimism or start to face change with a positive attitude. Here are some tips that can help to strengthen your resilience:

• Accept that there are situations that you cannot control and remember that there are always ups and downs in life.
• Begin to focus on what you can control: your response to the new situation, instead of focusing on the situation that causes you stress.
• Empower positive thoughts and turn every negative thought into positive action. Do something that you are good at or feel passionate about.
• Connect with your support network, friends who make you feel safe. The connection will help you find balance. It is important to identify optimistic idols with whom you communicate and build safe relationships and where you can get the strength to face change. GeoLatinas can be part of your support network like it is for me.
• In addition, to achieving internal balance, be mindful about your body, eat well and exercise.

In a constant process of cultivating my resilience, I decided that 2020 is the year of change. I invite you to evaluate it as an opportunity to make a pause, which, although difficult, has allowed us to learn, recognize our  privileges. It is an opportunity to resume Life with humility and open our eyes to the planet, to be attentive, to care, and to value our lives and embrace our destiny. A year to remind us that life is precious. 2020 is a year to pause.