The broken resilience meter

I was in Nigeria when COVID hit, and the global lockdowns rolled in. If the first set of lockdown was delayed for two weeks, I may have been ‘stuck’ in Switzerland for several months.

Someone I shared this with told me they aren’t sure what they would have done. Or how they would have coped.

Similar things were said of countries in the global south. “The healthcare systems in these countries were fragile.” “The pandemic will make things worse.” “The rate of depression will skyrocket.”

But several people came out of the situation stronger than before. Most of those I spoke with told me that they found the communal strength to get through that period. It was a painful experience, but it helped them see capacities they weren’t aware of.

We are prone to underestimating how resilient we are, and how equipped we can be to overcome adverse situations.

We overestimate how great the issues are, that we often forget how creative most of us can be when the situation demands that of us.

Our resilience meter may be broken. But we can give ourselves some credit, and mend it by paying attention a bit more clearly, and differently.