Resilience in the Family and Supporters of Resilience

Abstract

In the first part of this article, some basic elements are offered which can help to understand resilience. This understanding requires a perspective centered on the abilities and resources. However, resilience is not a resistance to varied aggressions, nor corresponds it to invulnerability. It involves adjustment mechanisms but it is essentially a dynamic psychological process of mentalization and elaboration which can develop only in intersubjectivity. So, the family can represent a privileged place for resilience to emerge, but it is also a fragile space which can itself be the point of impact of some aggressions. Therefore, the quality of attachment relations between the family members is essential. Three main lines are considered for the therapy: the protection, the ethics of the relationship, and mentalization. The crucial time for therapy is the middle term, namely the period that goes from a few weeks to some years after a crisis. It is during this period that work on the crisis is really possible.