Frontline Psych with Doc Bender: Becoming More Resilient

By Dr. James Bender, DCoE psychologist

Dr. James Bender is a former Army psychologist who deployed to Iraq as the brigade psychologist for the 1st Cavalry Division 4th Brigade Combat Team out of Fort Hood, Texas. During his deployment, he traveled through Southern Iraq, from Basra to Baghdad. He writes a monthly post for the DCoE Blog on psychological health concerns related to deployment and being in the military.

Resilient people tend to overcome difficult situations and experience less adverse effects. They’re also less likely to develop posttraumatic stress disorder, or mood or anxiety disorders. That’s why we continue to educate the military community about psychological resilience — healthy ways to adapt to stressful events.

Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) hosted the fourth annual Warrior Resilience Conference last month, which focused on restoring readiness and enhancing resilience within the individual, unit, family and community. During the two-day event, I learned a lot about resilience in general and existing and emerging efforts to help both service members and families thrive when faced with tough situations. But I think the most important message about resilience is that it can be improved. Here are a few ways you can improve your resilience and reinforce psychological strength:

■ Acquire an active coping lifestyle. This means that you actively try to change a situation for the better, rather than waiting or just wishing it gets better. Even a small improvement will give a feeling of control that’s very helpful.

■ Develop and nurture social support and friendships. Make an effort to widen your social circle and strengthen relationships. We draw strength from others, so surround yourself with people you trust and can communicate with openly.

■ Take care of yourself. There’s a significant relationship between physical activity and resilience, so take care of both your body and mind. This is one more reason to get in shape.

■ Make a conscious effort to be more optimistic. Very few situations are completely hopeless, or have no positive aspects. So focus on a solution, rather than a problem. With practice, you can become more optimistic.

■ Use your religion and spirituality. People with strong faith in God, country and/or family tend to be more resilient.

■ Remember past successes. Recalling times when you overcame difficult situations will encourage optimistic thinking and hope for the future.

■ Learn to predict and control your environment. We know change is constant, so focusing on what we can control can greatly reduce stress.

Resilience is like physical or mental fitness: you can improve it with effort and practice — and the payoff is worth it. Check out the resiliency strategies of the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Army and National Guard, and visit DCoE and Real Warriors Campaign to learn more about resilience resources available for the military community.

For troops serving overseas and stateside, look out for yourself and for those you care about. Thank you for your service.