RESILIENCE What it is, Why it Helps, How You Can Have It, & Your Campers Can, Too Deborah Gilboa, MD

COUNSELORS MUST Keep kids safe. Stick to a schedule. Enforce (and follow) the rules. See the big picture. Solve problems.

COUNSELORS CAN Teach skills. Forge relationships. Build confidence. Develop competence. Make camp awesome!

The ability to RECOVER from ADVERSITY! What do we know? –Bad things happen. –There are always choices to be made. –Feelings change over time. –Recovery requires tools and experience. What do people need? PRACTICE. WHAT IS RESILENCE?

4 STEPS 1.Build trust. 2.Accept emotions. 3.Move toward action. 4.Guide THEIR plan.

BUILD TRUST Start the 1 st minute! Tell the truth. Share goals. Challenge them to change a life this summer.

ACCEPT EMOTIONS Resilience requires emotion – Ignoring emotions -> damaging behavior – Expressing emotions -> positive coping mechanisms Resilience moves beyond emotion to action. What do people need? PRACTICE.

MOVE TOWARD ACTION 1.Get to the truth (remember empathy). 2.Don’t offer solutions. 3.Ask for options.

GUIDE THEIR PLAN Let life teach the lesson. Praise the process. Play “What if?” Connect to a character you share. What would you tell a friend? “I’ll be really interested to see what you do!”

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