Someone who can manage his emotions is normally equipped with what we call emotional resilience. Being mentally immune is the founding aspect of emotional resilience. Those who are not mentally immune would not be well-equipped for setbacks and might crumble once significant problems arise. So how is mental immunity achieved? This is achieved when the mind is trained to tolerate challenges and fear, recognising them as part of the development process.
Being able to manage your emotions means that you are capable of perceiving them from a third-party perspective. This allows one to be able to accept thoughts which scare him or her. So how does one build this emotional resilience and mental immunity?
Seek progress and not perfection
Someone who has a high degree of emotional resilience understands that perfection cannot be achieved. In this regard, he solely focuses on constant improvement and progress.
Their issues do not define you
Although you may suffer from certain issues during different phases in life, do not allow them to become an intricate part of them. Let us take someone who may be suffering from anxiety. A mentally immune person will not adopt the idea that he is an anxious individual. He will simply accept that it is a phase which will come to pass.
Accept and process fear
They accept that fear is a natural emotion and embrace it to achieve better results. They also understand that fear does not always reflect reality.
Embrace change
When people go through rough patches, they identify that they may need to adopt some changes. When such instances are identified, mentally immune people are not resistant to change. They embrace change as a necessary process which makes them better people, more equipped to face future challenges with strength.
Confronting feelings
The easiest way to avoid feeling pain is escapism. This is done by alienating the brain so as not to feel anything. This creates an attitude of passiveness which simply seeks to avoid and run away from the problem rather than solve it. Addressing your feelings head-on allows you to develop the mental and emotional strength to confront your uneasiness. This also develops healthy coping mechanisms.
Developing such mental immunity and emotional resilience allows us to use feelings to our benefit. Rather than eliminating feelings completely, one should strive to use them to his favour, which in turn would allow for more desirable outcomes.
