The Becker Community Education office and the Dylan's Hope foundation are offering a free workshop on resiliency for students and adults in the community on Sat., Jan. 17 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Becker High School.  The day-long program is presented free of charge, and lunch will be provided to participants, according to organizer Becky Bodien. 

 

The program is open to all area residents, including students, adults, parents, grandparents, all community leaders, educators, youth workers and military veterans.

 

Educator Tom Nitschke will be the featured speaker and presenter for the program, which will include material that he has written and has taught in his school over the past several years.  The topics deal with coping with stress, depression, and thoughts of suicide, all of which are still major problems for our community and area, Bodien said.  

 

Find the positive: Teaching students the importance of spending some time each day reflecting on positive things in their life and counteracts the negativity bias.  This is a very simple lesson but one of the most important blocks in the resiliency puzzle.  Triggers:  This lesson gives students a formula to start to analyze their thoughts and actions and control “triggers and consequences” relating to emotions and reactions.

 

 Mind sets:  Six common mind sets and the potential dangers and combinations which can lead to suicidal thoughts, and some coping strategies of each situation.  Active Constructive Response:  Work on “connections” competency (connections are important, since asking for help is a resiliency strategy). 

 

Real time Resiliency:  Based on sports psychology, these are real strategies for immediately countering negative thoughts.  The lesson pertains to all students, not just those that are struggling, but also to those who are succeeding.

 

 Confirmation Bias: “Confirmation bias” means subconsciously finding evidence to “prove” that our thoughts are correct while dismissing evidence that does not support us.  This is a very dangerous habit and this lesson helps students overcome it.