Resourcing Resilience & Recovery
Dear ones,
Today’s self-care strategy is resourcing, which is defined (in the world of business) as
The work of finding and providing the material,
money or people needed for a particular project.
Sometimes, getting through daily life in the world as it is can feel like quite the project… and one that may require new and unique resources as we go!
Resources play a significant role in the experience and impact of stress and trauma, as well as our ability to recover and heal. According to this article about military trauma, the Conservation of Resources (COR) Theory postulates that “individuals are motivated to protect, procure, and preserve resources” and that “traumatic stress results from an accelerated loss of resources, particularly those that are most valued by the individual.” Resources are defined as “anything that a person values,” including “objects (e.g. house, phone), conditions (e.g. stable employment, good health), personal characteristics, (e.g. optimism, hope), and energies (e.g. knowledge).” COR theory notes that the availability of internal and external resources can significantly impact resilience, health and stress during and following traumatic experiences, both individual and collective. And with COVID-19, this is not just theoretical.
We have witnessed and experienced the ways that the COVID-19 pandemic overwhelmed personal, practical and systemic resources, from patience to PPE… and how the loss or limiting of resources can impact ethical and moral distress as well as physical and mental health. We also know that many resources can be linked to privilege and social disparities, and may not always be equitably shared, distributed, accessed or utilized.
So anything we can do to identify, access and increase resources – for ourselves, our families, our communities, those we serve and those in need – may be protective of our resilience, healing and recovery from both individual and collective trauma. The strategy of resourcing – individually, interpersonally and collectively – is an active effort we can make in this direction.
If you made a list of everything that has ever helped you get through a difficult experience,
you would be resourcing.
Similarly, listing or verbalizing things you love can be a resourcing strategy.
(The key is to keep saying, “what else?” after each item.)
What resources are you utilizing right now, to get through the challenges you face?
What else?
What else?
What resources are you motivated to protect and preserve? What other resources might you need or want to procure? Are there ways we can share or extend our resources, or help others increase their own? And how might we advocate for the resourcing of individuals, families and communities who may be marginalized or disproportionately impacted by social stressors?
It’s also worth noting that we ourselves can be resources, and the companions in our lives can be resources for our own healing and recovery. Connecting with & expressing gratitude for the resources we have access to can go a long way toward helping through hard times!
Peace,
Glynn
