Posted by Carol Roos, DCoE Public Affairs on August 17, 2015
U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Connaher
Mental resilience, a new buzzword in psychological health, has long been a goal of military training, although it hasn’t always been defined that way. Some of the goals of military training — unit cohesion, physical fitness, mental stability — could help service members after deployment too.
Maj. Michael Gold has drawn on some of his training experience to develop tools that help him be more resilient in civilian life. He recalls preparing for the 101st Airborne Division deployment to southern Afghanistan during 2010-2011.
“Everything we did attempted to incorporate building mental toughness into soldiers,” Gold said. “From individual training to collective training, our leader team incorporated different types of stressors for soldiers; whether it was a physical stressor added to an event or mental stressor forcing a soldier to make a decision. All this was to help soldiers prepare to operate outside their comfort zones in garrison in preparation for the complexities of actual deployment and combat.”