Resilience, in the field of health as it relates to youth, is the ability to face adversity and survive in spite of that adversity. Even more, it is the capacity to excel when things aren’t going well. Sounds confusing? Let’s clarify.

Some kids grow up under such terrible circumstances that you might think they'd have no chance at a normal life, yet they ultimately do very well as they grow up. Many children of alcoholics go on to live free of alcohol addiction. Many kids subjected to terrible childhood abuse do not become abusers in adulthood. Many youngsters who grow up in gang-infested inner cities go on to live productive lives free of drugs and violence.

Young people are desperately pursuing a sense of belonging, a sense of identity. Who am I?  Where do I belong in this world?  Who cares about me?  We all modify our behaviors according to where we gain our sense of belonging.  We modify our dress, our speech and our behavior in order to fit in.   Sadly, with the busyness of life and the fears of stranger danger (not wanting to be viewed as a predator on young people), adults have withdrawn more and more from young people’s lives.