The Secret to Getting Through Tough Times

Picture this: Your life's going normally, maybe even awesomely, when suddenly, it happens -- something huge, something heavy, something that shoves your world into a blender. And weirdly, it does not come with a manual on how to cope. Now what?

Bad things happen to everyone. That's a fact of life. But here's another one: You've got a coping muscle, and you can build it up to make sure you come out of your next trauma much strong-a (see what I did there?). Flexing that muscle to bounce back after a hard time is called resilience.

In this month's issue of Choices, we meet four teens that have been through major trauma and used resilience to help them through it. They've each bounced back stronger, braver and with sage advice to give to teens going through similar situations. We've taken their wisdom, and with the help of Team Choices and our teens at the YMCA of New York, we created this "How to Deal" video for the next time a big, bad thing drops into your life.

Going through something now? Not sure what to do for a friend in need? Share the video below, and don't miss the story about four "Unbreakable" teen trauma survivors and their four incredible comebacks, in the February issue of Choices.

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