Try these seven strategies for building resilience

These resilience-building practices can help you learn to adapt and recover in the face of adversity.

• Prioritize healthy relationships: Build a supportive network of people who care about you and spend quality time (even if virtually) with them.
• Take care of your body: It’s easier to maintain mental and emotional balance when you feel healthy. Make an effort to eat well, get enough sleep, and exercise three or more times a week.
• Avoid negative outlets: Look for healthy ways to process difficult emotions. Trying to escape these emotions through harmful substance use will create more stress. 
• Be proactive: We can’t always control our circumstances, but we can take charge of our response. Break problems into manageable tasks and move forward.
• Practice self-awareness: When stressful events occur, it’s important to take a step back and reflect before we react. It helps to understand where your emotions are coming from before you share them.
• Learn from the past: Recognize who or what was helpful (or unhelpful) the last time you were in a stressful situation. Remembering other challenges you’ve overcome can help.
• Ask for help when you need it: Reaching out to family or friends, a health care professional, or a community resource isn’t easy, but knowing how to accept help is a sign of strength.