Established 2005 Registered Charity No. 1110656

Scottish Charity Register No. SC043760

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June – July 2025 : Resilience READ ONLINE

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What is resilience?

May 01 2025

Feeling isolated and without support, we need resilience, but we also find resilience and strength in community and connection. Words by Greta Gillett

I am resilient. You, dear reader, are resilient. We are also strong, fearless and brave. Often these words have different and complicated connotations.

I'm brave because I spoke up in court about abuse, I'm strong because I walked miles while pregnant to the food bank, I'm resilient because I kept going despite feeling incredibly overwhelmed by being failed by multiple different systems. All of this put a huge amount of responsibility in my lap.

I am a woman, a mother, a daughter, a part of society. And yet, because of the decimation of community spaces (youth clubs, day centres, etc.) by Thatcher and subsequent governments (special mentions to Blair and Cameron), there is a pressure to pull yourself out of the hole you are in.

Many people take that first step towards a better future, despite their struggles in the present, because they are resilient. Not necessarily because they have someone supporting them or are able to get on the housing list or able to apply for work or benefits.

Yet community is key to survival. Even though in my hardest and darkest times I have essentially been alone and not had support, especially state support, someone sending me a text or a charity helping me with a form meant I was able to move onto the next step. I was able to move forward.

Being truly alone made me want to give up because everything seemed so damned difficult.

Many times I phoned helplines (Samaritans, Domestic violence support lines and various mental health phone lines, for example) just for some human connection, following weeks where a friendly nod as I was being served in my corner shop was my only human contact.

Connection saved me, connection reminded me I'm not alone and connection reminded me people do care. I was very aware that many of the helplines are run by volunteers who weren't trying to fix me and chastise me, they only wanted to listen and support me.

If you are reading this feeling alone, go connect somehow, somewhere. Sit in a library or find a free event at a local community centre, there is hope in simple connections and that is resilience.

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