Dr. Marian Sokol's slide presentation from TPR's Think Science: Human Resiliency event, May 27, 2016

1. Human Resiliency
Marian Sokol, PhD, MPH
Executive Director
Children’s Bereavement Center
of South Texas
Camp Heroes
March 2016

2. Tiny Lives are No Small Matter

4. “Every Baby Deserves a First
Birthday”
But there are
2,500 SIDS Deaths Annually
26,000 Stillbirths Annually
And far too many parents
left with “empty arms”.

6. “Death Happens”
“ Every man’s life
ends the same way. It is
only the details of how
he lived and how he
died that distinguish one
man from another.”
Ernest Hemingway

7. I Hate When People Die

8. Resilience Is …
Traveling through
the painful journey
of grief. You want to
get through it – not
over it.

9. Resilience …
What does the research tell us?

10. “This range is formed by heredity, early life experiences,
current knowledge and level of motivation to meet life’s
challenges and enjoy each day to the fullest … no matter
what happens.”
Robert J. Wicks, PsyD
“Each of us has a range
of resilience (the ability to
meet, learn from and not
be crushed by the
challenges and stresses of
life).”

11. Early Childhood Years Are
Critical in Shaping Resilience

12. Adverse Childhood Experiences
Can Produce Toxic Stress

13. Resilience will grow in a predictable,
“safe” environment, where children can
learn, take risks – and even fail and try
again.

14. I Can Fly!

15. How Resilience Works
Internal Factors that Strengthen
Resilience
•An “I can do it!” attitude.
•An understanding of one’s strengths.
•Learn how to nurture and care for
yourself.
External Factors That Strengthen Resilience
•Provide meaningful contributions to others
After September 11th
: “Give whatever you have to give.”
•Increase bonds and connections
Clubs, Organizations, Self-Help Groups
Strength of Family
Study after study shows that people who are lonely are at high risk for cardiovascular
disease and dementia.
(Research of Nan Henderson, LCSW)

16. How Resilience Works
RESILIENCE CAN BE LEARNED
• A staunch acceptance of
reality
• A deep belief that life is
meaningful
• An ability to improvise
“More than education, more than experience, more than
training, a person’s level of resilience will determine who
succeeds and who fails. That’s true in the Olympics, and
that’s true in the boardroom.”
Dean Becker, CEO Adaptive Learning Systems

17. Invictus Games
A Deep Belief That Life Can Be Meaningful