As a school counsellor, I know that parents of kids who have been struggling during the pandemic feel powerless and worry about long-term emotional fallout. Although caregivers can't always alter children's circumstances or shield them from discomfort, they can offer a more enduring gift: tools to manage adversity.
"Resilience works like a muscle we can build through effort and repetition, and we want to keep our muscles strong and flexible, so we can think of many ways to solve a problem," says Mary Alvord, co-author of "Resilience Builder Program for Children and Adolescents." "At the core, resilience is the belief that while you can't control everything in your life, there are many aspects you can control, including your attitude."