– the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.
I suppose I’ve always been resilient. I don’t remember many difficulties that I had to recover from as a child.
One of the first memories I have of trauma is seeing my dog hit by a pickup when I was about 10. It was horrifying and to this day I can still see what happened although not the driver involved.
On particularly rough days when I’m sure
I can’t possibly endure, I like to remind myself that my track record for getting through bad days so far is 100%… and that’s pretty good.
Author Unknown
That was followed by other similar loses including the horse that I had grown up with. Grandpa gave him to me when I was nine and he was two. I had him until shortly before Mike and I were married when he succumbed to an unknown disease. I will always wonder if there was something else that could have been done.
I guess I’ve also always been an optimist. Psychology Today says that is one of the traits that resilient people have. I’ve always looked for the good in people and situations.
I now know when I hire someone to work with a horse for me that I need to tell them to be brutally honest about the horse’s abilities. This was after I had one in race training and the trainer said he didn’t think he was going to be what I wanted. Let’s keep going with him. The first time I saw him run I was back at the barn fairly quickly and he was already cooled out and in his stall. He didn’t really try did he, I asked. No, he’s not really interested in running. I’ll come to get him as soon as possible. He was a great hunter/jumper until he escaped one night and was hit by a truck.
I’ve had many disappointments like that. I guess they prepared me for the five-and-a-half long medical trek that I had with Mike and my own diagnosis with breast cancer.
There were days when I was emotionally dehydrated during Mike’s illness. People would often ask me how I did it. Then one day I was talking with my therapist, I had told him I was exhausted and terrified. He said I was one of the strongest people he knew.
Between our sessions, I decided that I was tired of being so strong. I asked him what my other options were. He answered being a victim. I guess I’ll have to be strong because I don’t think I can be a victim.
These mares are ready to help me.
Of being resilient I’d say it helps to stay in the moment. Look toward the future but don’t dwell on either that or the past.
For me, the horses help me keep my focus. Whenever something bad happened I would go to them. It was only recently that their wonderful healing powers were brought to my consciousness. Although my unconsciousness had known it all along.
Connect with me here if you’d like to discover the healing power of the horses through the Equine Gestalt Coaching Method®.
“My scars remind me that I did indeed survive my deepest wounds. That in itself is an accomplishment. And they bring to mind something else, too. They remind me that the damage life has inflicted on me has, in many places, left me stronger and more resilient. What hurt me in the past has actually made me better equipped to face the present.”
― Steve Goodier
I’m Still Standing after everything.
Onward! Optimism
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