UNAIR NEWS – Maintaining family resilience both physically and mentally is certainly a challenge for everyone, especially parents. Therefore, Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) Psychology lecturer Valina Khiarin Nisa, S.Psi., M.Sc., shared characteristics and tips for maintaining family resilience in a Community Service online class, Faculty of Psychology, on Wednesday, August 4, 2021.
According to Valina, family resilience is reflected in six main characteristics. The first is mutual appreciation and affection. Words like ‘sorry’, ‘please’, and ‘thank you’ are often difficult to say to family members even though they seem trivial.
In fact, added Valina, sentences of appreciation or affection are part of caring and can turn challenges into opportunities to grow together. “Furthermore, there is a love language that we must understand. For couples and family members, this language becomes a form of expression of their appreciation and affection, “explained Valina.
The love language consists of five forms: physical touch, positive words, quality time, sincere help, and gifts. Since everyone has a different language or way of expressing love, we should know the love language of our partners, children, and parents.
Second, family resilience is reflected in positive communication among family members. This positive communication can be built by thinking before speaking, telling facts honestly but still being polite, respecting opinions, and conveying wishes.
In addition, we must also try to listen to our hearts, give other people the opportunity to speak, avoid assumptions and express perceptions, be open with our feelings, learn to be good listeners, and verify understanding of what the family conveys.
Third, remember the commitment to God and partner. Efforts to strengthen this commitment can be made by strengthening spirituality and prayer, proving through actions and words, showing empathy, and involving positive circles.
Furthermore, we need to spend time with our family while working at home. Responding to the pandemic situation that demands work from home, it is better for parents to provide quality time for their children and partners. Start by making a timeline of activities, staying away from devices when with family, and separating work time from activities with family.
Lastly, we should be able to deal with pressure and difficulties effectively. “A tough family has strong resilience in physical, economical, social, mental, and spiritual aspects. Resilience in these various aspects must be shared by every family member,” explained Valina.
Through this strategy, families are expected to build resilience from various aspects, both physically and mentally. In addition to educational sessions with online series class participants, Valina and other speakers also provided consultation sessions for parents who wanted to build family resilience, especially amid the pandemic situation. (*)
Author: Intang Arifia
Editor: Binti Q. Masruroh (YA/AP)
