When I think of the word strength, I feel courage, endurance, goal-getter, resilience, unstoppable, a strong individual and so many more I could mention. Strength has several different meanings to every one of us. We always often think of our parents, their strength and how they empower us to become and strive better in our lives. To others, strength could be their favorite superhero, a firefighter, military person, police officer, etc. Strength is not showing how much physical muscle we have, it is our inner spirit. Strength is who we are and what makes us internally. Our character demonstrates our strength to others. Merriam-Webster dictionary’s meaning of strength is, “1. The quality or state of being strong: capacity for exertion or endurance …show more content…
After completing my Authentic Happiness Questionnaire, I noticed that all five strengths are precise in my life. I went through a divorce and I became a much stronger, resilient woman after all the emotional hurt I went through. According to the Positive Psychology book, “Resilience refers to humans’ amazing ability to bounce back and even thrive in the face of serious life challenges. Research suggests that resilience is a widely shared human capacity that many people may not know they possess until confronted with trauma or crisis” (Baumgardner, 2009). Not a lot of woman would have dealt with a divorce by embracing it as a new positive outlook in life. I know many other women that tried to cope with their divorce by going to night clubs and participate in excessive drinking activities to “cover up” the emotional wounds. Hence, why I say strength is in many forms. Not everyone has the endurance to undergo pain. Many people who go through painful situations in life and don’t have that strength, always lean on other forms of “strength” like; drugs, alcohol, and anything that is negative or won’t be of a positive motivation to keep …show more content…
I was scared to leave my marriage 5 years before getting a divorce. I was terrified of the thought of being single and that no one was going to love me. Therefore, I allowed myself to continue to be in an emotionally abusive marriage because of fear. I didn’t love him because the love was already lost, but I was comfortable and used to having someone around. Once I removed my fear and allowed my faith to help me, I proceeded with filing for a divorce. My religious beliefs helped me endure a lot as I was going through the actual divorce process. Faith gave me comfort, peace and experience the 5 stages of the grieving process with less suffering. In the Journal of Religion and Health it states, “Spirituality is an important dimension of life: it is of vital importance for everyday life and for being human. People are not only psychological, social and physical beings but spiritual beings as well. When facing difficulties, spirituality often helps understand apparently incomprehensible things and achieve managing something which is obviously hard to manage. Many distressed individuals turn to religion and use religious strategies of coping to regulate difficult affects. Religious coping can be therefore defined as a process in which an individual—as a proactive agent in the process of coping with various challenges (such as divorce)—in different ways includes a religious or spiritual
Weaver, Andrew J. and Kevin J. Flannelly. “The Role of Religion/Spirituality for Cancer Patients and Their Caregivers.” Southern Medical Journal 97 (December 2004): pp. 97-98. 1210-1214. Spiegel, David. The 'Standard'.
Echterling et al. (2005), claim that survivors who recover from a trauma and return to their state of well being, achieve positive transformation and transcendence involving a period of dramatic personal growth. Moreover, Chessick (as cited in Echterling, 2005) suggests that survivors in their response to crisis, either take a neurotic path whic...
Religion can be defined in many ways and has different meanings for different people; some say religion is a belief in a god or gods. According to (Religion, 2015) religion is defined as faith in a divinely created order of the world. Places of worship vary from churches, temples, and mosques to list a few. For many, religion is turned to in times of distress and confusion. Many seek assistance through religion similar to how client seeks assistance from therapy. In the past religion has been used to heal, which begs the question does religion belong in therapy? In this essay I will discuss religion in therapy.
These traumatic events can present themselves in the form of a somatic injury; psychological or physical abuse or even through natural disasters or terrorist attacks. Nevertheless, any type of traumatic event can lead to devastating lasting effects in an individual’s lifespan. Consequently, producing a distrustful view of the world, mental health symptoms and even to mislay complete trust in God. However, we are resilient beings who have the capacity to turn unfortunate circumstances into valuable experiences, but in order to be able to do that there has to be an understanding and a purpose as to why traumatic situations do happen. A connection with God can provide the answer as to why people go through this traumatic events. Understanding the purpose behind a devastating experience can stimulate the healthy psychological and physical growth of a human being. The bible provides an insight on how spirituality can lead to recovery even in the midst of traumatic experiences. 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (Open Bible, 2015). Psalms 107: 13-16 says, “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! For he shatters
The novel Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals has many themes that are shown. One of the major themes that stuck out to me was inner strength and perseverance. Inner strength means to have Integrity of character: resoluteness of will: mental resistance to doubt or discouragement. Perseverance means steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.
This strength, in particular, influenced my decision to pursue social work as a career because cases will often be complex and I know that changes do not occur overnight and positive results only occur within time. I mastered the strength of being patient because growing up with an older sibling often requires you to learn patience. One aspect I realized was I don’t get frustrated easily and that is because I can be a patient person. The second strength I possess is being empathetic for example when a friend or family member shares something that may not be going to good in their life I like to pretend I am in their shoes, I like to provide empowerment and also be relatable, often times when one of my friends is upset over a situation I tend to get upset as well. I like to look at events through a sociological lens so I can better understand the situation. The last strength I possess is dedication, I feel this will influence my decision to pursue social work because I put my heart and soul into every aspect of my life, for example, I am quite dedicated to my studies, in High School I worked extremely hard to make it into the top ten of my graduating class and by being dedicated to my school work I ended up being number five. I am an extremely dedicated person because I do not like to fail, and I’ll always give it my all until I can no longer do so, I believe I would be a good social worker because I’d be dedicated to my client trying my hardest to provide the best of the
I tend to agree with this assessment as it brings out my best qualities as strengths in the right way and enables me to assess myself to realize my potential. The strength that can best describe me is the balance which also means consistency. This has helped me cultivate my reputation and has helped me balance my choices. The one that surprised me is courage since at most times I am a team player, and this rarely enables me to stand out
Resilience and hardiness has long been a topic of research and discussion within different paradigms and fields of study, for example, in military psychology, psychiatry, health statistics and measurement, medical anthropology, education, medicine and organizational settings. Resilience means the skills, abilities, acquaintance, and insight that accumulate over time as people struggle to conquer adversity and meet challenges. It is an ongoing and developing fund of energy and skill that can be used in current struggles (Saleebey, 1996; Liebenberg, 2005).Most commonly, the term resilience has come to mean an individual's ability to overcome adversity and continue his or her normal development.
In today’s society, people like to believe they are different or unique; however, we all share the same qualities as far as our weaknesses and strengths go. While one group’s greatest strength might be forgiveness, it might be another group’s greatest weakness. It is important for people to know what their greatest weaknesses and strengths are because these qualities help define who people are. Furthermore, it is crucial for people to not only focus on their negative qualities, but to also focus on their positive qualities. Upon taking the “VIA Survey of Character Strengths,” I learned what my top five strengths are, how my weakest strength is also one of my top strengths, and how I already incorporate them into my everyday life.
With this one can see why people practice religions in general, because religion gives a sense of security through stressing that faith is the key to getting through suffering. Faith in the everlasting soul, faith in God, or faith that one will end in the right place. Faith is the common factor among religions, and suffering brings out the faith in people.
I was born with a little of strength but every time I face a challenge I become more and more powerful. Throughout the challenges that I have faced in my life I learned how to be responsible, courageous, and
There is evidence suggesting that attention to one’s spirituality influences the ability to cope with illness, help in the prevention of illn...
From my understanding, I have come to view resilience as the art of not dwelling. This personal definition, I recognize, only summarizes half of the word’s meaning, not even touching on the action of recovery. I chose to view it in this way because, I find it helps me to find it manageable. I often struggle with experiencing difficulties or changes, I often find myself internalizing my problems which leads me to introspection and self doubt. By concentrating on a single facet I am able to better manage resilience. Despite my choice to ignore the second half on the word’s meaning, by choosing not to dwell, I have found recovery becomes easier to achieve. As a person who prefers math and science, problem solving from an analytical perspective is an enjoyable task, but when emotions are involved the process gets derailed or takes longer. I have found that using my strategy of not dwelling I am able to analytically look at my situation and consider my next steps to
As people like to believe they are different or unique, we all relatively have the same mind-set as far as our weakest or strongest qualities go. While one group’s greatest strength might be forgiveness, it might be another group’s greatest weakness. It is important for people to know what their greatest weaknesses and strengths are because theses qualities help define who people are. Furthermore, it is crucial for people to not only focus on their negative qualities, but to also focus on their positive qualities. Upon taking the “VIA Survey of Character Strengths,” I learned what my top five strengths are, how my weakest strength is also one of my top strengths, and how I already incorporate them into my everyday life.
According to Hutchison (2015), “religion is symbolic patterns that consists of values, beliefs, behaviors and experiences” (p. 184). I personal conceptualize spirituality as a vital role in my life that helps me during a time of sickness, forgiveness, and needed guidance. Spirituality helps guide me throughout life during the difficult times I have encountered. Spirituality impacts my life in positive ways that influence and regulate my behavior and health. Health is very important to me; I believe the spirit can heal a person from their sickness. It seems that the spirit heals me every time I pray to be healed from sickness. The spirit gives me strength at a time of weakness. When I feel at my lowest point in life I call on the spirit to pick