Episode 2: Resilience, on Human Being with Dr. Susan

As a companion to the Resilience episode, check out these Reflection & Exploration Prompts:Use these prompts as journal questions, internal check-ins, or discussion guides. 1. In the last 6–12 months: when have you felt stretched, triggered, or off-center? How did you respond — did you resist, suppress, react, or adapt? 2. What emotions or stresses have you been reluctant to acknowledge or feel (anger, grief, exhaustion, doubt)? What would change if you allowed yourself to recognize and name them? 3. In what areas of your life do you already show resilience (big or small)? What patterns or habits support that resilience? 4. Where do you feel emotionally or mentally rigid — what parts of your life resist adaptation or flexibility, even though life is changing? 5. Who are the people in your life you trust — who can you rely on or go to when life gets heavy? Is your support network wide enough, or does it feel fragile? 6. What practices (self-care, boundaries, rest, reflection) do you neglect when life gets busy — and how might building or reclaiming them strengthen your resilience? 7. How do you view change, uncertainty, and discomfort: as problems to solve, or as inevitable parts of growth and living? What might it shift for you if you leaned more into the latter view? 8. What small, everyday “flexes” can you practice to build adaptability — e.g. changing routines, experimenting with new habits, trying small uncomfortable changes — so you become more comfortable with change overall? 9. When adversity comes (or comes again), what internal compass or values will you lean on to guide you — what matters enough to help anchor you? 10. What does “being resilient” mean for you personally (not culturally or ideally) — does it mean strength, softness, presence, growth, community, healing, or something else? 11. How can you allow your resilience to include vulnerability — not just bouncing back, but growing, healing, becoming more authentic? 12. What’s one action you can take this week to strengthen your resilience: a conversation, boundary, pause, self-care moment, shift — just one step toward greater emotional flexibility and well-being?