In this third week of focusing on Stress Awareness Month, I'm happy to announce the release of Firefly's latest online program, The Art of Resiliency. Resiliency is defined as the ability to bounce back from adversity, and adapt to the changing demands of stressful experiences.
While stress is a normal psychological and physical reaction to the demands of life, everyone reacts differently to difficult situations. It's normal to feel stress and worry during a crisis. But as this article on the Mayo Clinic's website states "multiple challenges daily, such as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, can push you beyond your ability to cope...Despite your best efforts, you may find yourself feeling helpless, sad, angry, irritable, hopeless, anxious or afraid. You may have trouble concentrating on typical tasks, changes in appetite, body aches and pains, or difficulty sleeping or you may struggle to face routine chores."
You're not alone. Surveys have shown a major increase in the number of U.S. adults who report symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression during the pandemic, compared with surveys before the pandemic. We're facing an unprecedented time of constant pressure, high demands, and significant change and uncertainty, leading to a negative impact on health, relationships and performance.
I've experienced this myself, with bouts of sadness due to the loss of many of the things that usually bring me joy. I've had to tap into the toolbox that I've developed over the 11 years since surviving a heart attack, and explore new resources, such as courses in resilience and well being offered on Coursera by University of Pennsylvania and Yale University.
i want to share these tools and resources with you in the hope that they will inspire and empower you to adjust and recover from today's demands and uncertainty.
Register by visiting our online course library.