What’s Your Pandemic Story?
Good Housekeeping
We’ve covered a lot of ground in recent months, from building resilience through the doing to uncovering resilience through the being. This week, we take stock of our incredible progress through the simple yet powerful act of owning our personal pandemic story.
We’ve faced some of our most difficult moments these past few months, both collectively and as individuals. First with the pandemic and then with witnessing the racial protests, this era has felt like a sea change: a huge, monumental and radically altering moment in time that has transformed life as we know it.
The uncertainly of change, even in the best of situations, can feel frightening and overwhelm us. But when we own our story about these difficult moments and retell it using our own words, we can find our way to resilience.
It all starts with the story we tell ourselves.
When we create a narrative that infuses personal meaning to external events, we’re better able to cope with change. Why? Because humans are meaning-seeking, purpose-driven creatures and creating meaning is a pivotal component to building resilience.
Storytelling & Our Health
Using storytelling to improve our health is scientifically called cognitive reframing and it can have a profound impact on our resilience.
Here’s how to put it into action: For the next week, spend a few minutes each day writing “your pandemic story.” Ask yourself the following questions: How has this experience shaped you? What have you gained? What have you lost? And most importantly, what hard-won lessons about your own personal resilience have you discovered?
This process can help us move towards something called post-traumatic growth, a fascinating phenomenon that gives us the ability to make strides in our emotional health as we face difficult situations.
Its like the Buddhist monks say: no mud, no lotus.
Celebrate Your Independence
Storytelling can have a powerful impact on our resilience. When we pause, reflect and take stock to create our own narrative, we create meaning to that difficult experience and foster a sense of independence separate from the external chaos around us. And with July 4th approaching (that's American Independence Day for our international readers), how fitting to reclaim and celebrate your incredible, independent and resilient spirit that’s carried you so far!
