Life skills and resilience help us manage stress, maintain mental and emotional health, and recover from hardships more quickly.

It doesn’t eliminate stress or shield us from challenges but equips us with tools and mindsets that can help us better cope when faced with life’s inevitable ups and downs.

The World Health Organisation, UNICEF, and UNESCO carried out research to develop a list of the ten most important life skills:

1. Self-awareness
2. Empathy
3. Critical thinking
4. Creative thinking
5. Decision-making
6. Problem-solving
7. Effective communication
8. Interpersonal relationships
9. Coping with stress
10. Coping with emotions

Activities that enhance these skills can help us as we face new challenges, such as economic stress, divorce, physical illness, and aging.

For example, practising mindfulness, journaling, or undertaking physical activity, can provide an emotional outlet and reduce stress. These help us develop and strengthen healthy coping mechanisms.

A sense of hope, optimism, or plans for the future can be a powerful protective factor against suicidal thoughts.

We all need hope in our lives. It is an important part of staying well and helps us when we’re experiencing difficult times.

Feeling like all hope is lost can be challenging to deal with. It can affect motivation and energy levels and leave someone feeling very alone but finding hope is possible and there are things that can help inspire hope. 

Read more about hope [link to news article]

Personal motivations or beliefs that can help give us a sense of purpose and hope can help us resist suicidal thoughts.

These factors are highly individual and can vary widely based on personal values, relationships, or future goals but some common reasons for living include:

• Family
• Friends
• Pets
• Career
• Hobbies
• Future ambitions
• Personal goals
• Looking forward to key life experiences and milestones
• Small and simple pleasures

A sense of belonging, acceptance and feeling valued by others is important for many of us to feel well mentally and emotionally.

Belonging and connection is a protective factor against feelings of loneliness, isolation, and despair, which are often associated with suicidal thoughts. It's the feeling of being linked to people, places, or causes that offer support, meaning, and a sense of purpose.

When we feel connected, we’re more likely to reach out for support in times of need. It can help increase feelings of self-worth and give us a greater sense of security.

Belonging and connection can help mitigate feelings of despair and create a buffer against stress, helping people navigate life's challenges more effectively.

You can increase feelings of belonging and connection by:

• nurturing existing relationships
• joining community groups based on your interests
• volunteering for a cause you care about

Building belonging and connection often involves taking small, consistent actions to reach out to others, engage meaningfully, and cultivate relationships over time. These efforts can lead to meaningful connections that strengthen resilience and enhance life satisfaction.

A healthy lifestyle serves as a protective factor against suicide, providing us with the foundation that can help us better manage life’s stressors more effectively.

Things that contribute to a healthy lifestyle include:

• Being physically active
• Getting regular quality sleep
• Staying hydrated
• Eating a balanced diet
• Spending time in nature

A healthy lifestyle can help increase energy, reduce fatigue and irritability and supports positive self-esteem.  

Physical activity releases endorphins that helps boost our mood and also provides an outlet for feelings.

Self-acceptance is a way of being kind to ourselves. Being kind to ourselves can feel like something that is easy to say but difficult to do.

By fostering self-acceptance, we strengthen our mental health, improve our resilience, and reduce our susceptibility to thoughts of suicide. Self-acceptance also increases the likelihood that we’ll feel worthy of asking for and accepting help and support.

Here are some of the ways you can develop your self-acceptance

Treat yourself with compassion

Treat yourself with the kindness and understanding you would show to others. Forgive yourself for mistakes and look for what they teach you.

Developing the ability to forgive ourselves and let go of feelings of shame and guilt helps reduce our emotional burdens.

Challenge negative self-talk

Reduce self-criticism and feelings of self- shame by challenging negative self-talk. This can be something as simple as replacing ‘I’m not good enough’ with ‘I’m doing my best and that’s enough’.

Recognise that perfection doesn’t exist

Sometimes when we lack self-acceptance, we strive for perfection to try to prove our worth, but this can lead to increased feelings of stress, failure and burnout. Try to recognise that perfection doesn’t exist

Acknowledge your strengths and accept your perceived flaws and weaknesses (or even think about how they can also be strengths – for example, help make your more empathetic to others).

Challenge social comparisons

Try to avoid comparing yourself to others. It is especially important to remember that what you see on social media is not a complete picture or even a true picture sometimes.

Everyone is unique and follows their own path. Accepting similarities and differences can help us develop feelings of self-worth.

Practise reflection and focus personal growth

Think about the things that bring you joy, celebrate your achievements and personal self-improvement.

You may find it helpful to reflect on your progress and focus on personal growth through journaling or by keeping a gratitude diary

Get professional help and support if needed

Developing self-acceptance can be easier when we’re guided. Sometimes therapy or counselling can help provide tools and guidance to help with self-acceptance. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is one effective method for challenging negative thoughts and improving self-image.

When we accept ourselves for who we are, we build inner resilience, a sense of worth, and a foundation for healthy coping in the face of challenges.