Stories of Strength: What Healing Can Teach Us About Resilience

Lianne Perry, MA, MSc., RCC

Light always finds its way through, even in the thickest part of the forest.

Resilience doesn’t mean never breaking

When people hear the word resilience, they often picture someone who’s unshakable. Calm in every storm. Always getting back up with a smile.

But real resilience isn’t about being unbreakable. It’s about learning that even when life knocks you down, you can mend. Healing teaches us that strength isn’t the absence of pain. It’s what you do with it.

Sometimes resilience looks like standing tall. Other times it looks like sitting quietly, breathing through tears, or finally asking for help. All of it counts.

Healing shows you how strong you already are

Most people don’t realize they’re resilient until they have to be. You survive a loss, a trauma, or a season of uncertainty, and at some point you look back and think, I didn’t know I could do that.

Healing reveals strength that has always been there. It doesn’t turn you into someone new. It helps you reconnect with the parts of you that have been carrying you through all along.

In therapy, I often see clients rediscover their own strength in small, quiet ways. The moment they tell the truth out loud. The time they choose rest over guilt. The first time they say no without apologizing. Those moments might look ordinary, but they are extraordinary.

Resilience doesn’t always look graceful

Some days resilience looks like a deep sigh. Or a messy cry in the car. Or finally sending that text that says, “I need support.”

Healing isn’t a highlight reel. It’s made of the small, unglamorous moments that teach your nervous system safety, over and over again.

You don’t have to be calm to be strong. You just have to stay curious enough to keep going.

Healing helps you trust yourself again

Trauma and chronic stress often make people doubt their instincts. You start second-guessing your judgment, wondering if your feelings are “too much,” or assuming you should just handle things better.

Healing is the process of returning to yourself. Slowly, you start to recognize that your emotions aren’t wrong. They are signals. You begin to trust your own read on situations. You notice that you can pause, breathe, and self-soothe instead of self-blame.

That’s resilience too. Not forcing calm, but learning to trust your own inner compass again.

The quiet power of trying again

Resilience doesn’t need to be loud. It doesn’t mean pushing through at all costs. Sometimes it simply means trying again, even when you don’t feel ready.

Trying to stay open after disappointment. Trying to set a boundary even when your voice shakes. Trying to believe that your past doesn’t define you.

Each time you try again, you strengthen the part of your brain that says, “I can handle this.” That’s how resilience grows, one brave step at a time.

What the ocean teaches us about strength

The ocean has always been my favourite metaphor for healing. It doesn’t resist the storm. It moves with it, knowing calm will return.

Healing works the same way. You learn to ride the waves instead of fighting them. You begin to trust that even the rough ones will settle again.

Strength isn’t about staying steady all the time. It’s about remembering that movement itself is part of the process.

You are already resilient

If you’re reading this and thinking, I don’t feel strong, that’s okay. Most people don’t feel resilient while they’re in the middle of healing. It’s only later that you realize how much you’ve carried.

Every time you face a fear, speak your truth, or try something new after being hurt, you’re practicing resilience. Healing doesn’t erase pain, but it transforms your relationship with it. It shows you that you can bend without breaking, feel deeply and still move forward.

That’s what real strength looks like.

Joey’s Take 🐾

Joey demonstrating resilience in action. Sometimes you miss, sometimes you catch it. Either way, you keep playing.

My human says resilience isn’t about being unbreakable. I think it’s like when I chase my ball and it rolls under the couch. I might huff for a second, but then I try again. Sometimes I even figure out a new way to get it. That’s resilience too; persistence, curiosity, and the belief that treats are still waiting at the end.

About Lianne

I’m Lianne Perry, a Registered Clinical Counsellor in BC who works online with clients across Canada. I specialize in trauma, anxiety, and life transitions, and I’m certified in EMDR, a powerful approach that helps people heal without having to relive every detail of the past. My sessions are grounded, collaborative, and often a mix of talk therapy and practical tools. When I’m not in session, you’ll probably find me hiking with my Aussie, Joey, or sitting by the ocean, my favourite co-therapist.