If self-efficacy is the belief in your ability to succeed at a given task or accomplish a goal (click here), resilience is your ability to cope with — and bounce back from — stress and adversity, even growing through each experience.

Everyone faces tough life events, from everyday challenges to traumatic occurrences. According to the Mayo Clinic, changes affect people differently, and each change brings a flood of thoughts, emotions and uncertainty. But people generally adapt well over time to life-changing and stressful situations — thanks, in part, to resilience.

In fact, psychologists define resilience as the process of adapting well to significant sources of stress. As much as resilience involves “bouncing back” from difficult experiences, it can also include great personal growth.

For example, your level of resilience affects how you respond when things go wrong. Do you use your inner strength and resilience to bounce back from a setbacks or challenges, or do you get stuck on problems, feel like a victim or fall apart? If you struggle to recover, you may turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as drug or alcohol use, eating disorders or engaging in risky behaviors.

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Resilience doesn't make your problems disappear, but it can help you find ways to enjoy life and better handle stress.

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If you aren't as resilient as you'd like to be, the Mayo Clinic suggests learning these skills.

• Get connected. Build strong, healthy relationships with loved ones and friends that give you needed support and help guide you in good and bad times. Connect with others by volunteering, becoming active in a club or joining a faith or spiritual group.
• Do something that gives you a sense of success and purpose every day. Set clear goals you can reach to help you look toward the future.
• Learn from the past. Think of how you've coped with troubles in the past. Think about what has helped you through those tough times. You might even want to write about past events in a journal to help you see the patterns of how you behave and how you may want to act in the future.
• Stay hopeful. Being open to change makes it easier to adapt and view new challenges — like setting and achieving new wellness goals — with less worry. If this is a goal you want to work on, consider enlisting the help of a PATH Health Coach.
• Take care of yourself. Tend to your own needs and feelings. Do activities and hobbies you enjoy. Include physical activity in your daily routine. Get plenty of sleep and create bedtime rituals. Eat a healthy diet. Practice how to manage stress. Create a PATH Healthy Habit Challenge or Journey to find and try ways to relax, such as yoga, meditation, guided imagery, deep breathing or prayer.
• Take action. Don't ignore your problems. Instead, figure out what you need to do, make a plan and take action. Remember, it can take time to recover from a major setback, trauma or loss. But know that your life can improve if you work at it.

When to Seek Professional Advice

Getting more resilient takes time and practice. If you don't feel you're making progress, or you don't know where to start, talk with a mental health professional. With guidance, you can improve your resiliency and mental well-being. If you need more in-depth help, you can turn to PDRMA’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) that has both English and non-English-speaking counselors available to talk with you 24 hours a day — every day at 877.215.6614. EAP is a free resource that employees and anyone in their households can use, even if the family member is not enrolled in a medical plan. EAP services can help you balance work and daily tasks, and obtain legal and/or financial guidance. You can find more information about your EAP benefits on PATH and  PDRMA’s website on the Wellness Benefits and Resources page under Mental Health.