Building resilience

As well as developing good mental health habits, it’s also important to consider the pace of change that might be possible in your circumstances, in order for your advocacy to be sustainable over the long term.

Pace yourself. Rome was not built in a day. Remember that what we do in advocacy takes time and effort and needs a healthy dose of patience and persistence.

Aim for a realistic pace of activity, that is fast enough to gain momentum but slow enough to have time to carefully consider and collaborate with the parties who should be involved, and to put in place the structures and systems you need to support your advocacy over the coming months and years. In considering the pace and type of activity, return to your strategy as you make meaningful moves towards achieving your goals. It’s also important to recognise that for most patient partners, their own health or care responsibilities for other people mean that their time is limited, and their availability may change at short notice.

Advocacy can be a challenging field and there might be bureaucratic obstacles and slow moving processes. Persistence and resilience are essential qualities in pushing for change and achieving long term goals.

Here are 5 tips that can help to build resilience:

• Regularly reconnect with your purpose and values. This can be a powerful motivator when things get tough.
• Build a supportive network of like-minded individuals and mentors who can provide emotional support and practical advice.
• Prioritise self-care to avoid burnout (as discussed in the previous step). Recognise that rest and self-compassion are critical parts of your work. What this means is setting boundaries, scheduling regular downtimes and practising healthy habits like mindfulness, meditation and exercise.
• Cultivate an adaptable and flexible mindset that could help you respond to unforeseen challenges and learn from setbacks.
• Finally, remember to celebrate small wins! Recognise and celebrate every victory – no matter how small – as a step forward in your journey.

Reflection questions:

What activities or practices do you use to look after yourself?

What skills do you need to build to help you cope with some of the challenges that arise in doing advocacy work?