Learning to thrive in the face of challenges and how to bounce back from adversity are skills that can be taught and learned.
In-processing Soldiers and Fort Belvoir community members learned just such skills during Fort Belvoir's first Master Resiliency Training pilot course Feb. 13-14 and, in the near future, anyone on Fort Belvoir may be able to attend such training.
The course featured instruction from garrison directorate-trained staff and touched on subjects such as conduct in battle, trust issues in relationships and overcoming injury.
The two-day course is the first of two pilot programs garrison leadership is hosting to prepare the installation for a Master Resiliency Training program for all in-processing Soldiers.
Students filled out a survey testing their knowledge of resiliency at the beginning and again at the end of the course. On average, 38 percent of the questions were answered correctly during the pre-class survey but this number jumped to 73 percent after course completion.
"We really made a big impact in establishing a durable program at Belvoir," said Don Dees, MRT instructor, during the two-day course. "We've proven that we can conduct this training here effectively."
Dees and Timothy Maples, MRT instructor, used the resilience pyramid to guide students.
The talking points of the pyramid are Activating Events, Thinking Traps, Icebergs, Problem Solving, Put it Perspective, Mental Games and Real Time Resilience. Each point forces people to look inward to understand and strengthen their thoughts. Dees and Maples taught each pyramid talking point to students by using videos, Power Point presentations, class discussion and exercises.
An early discussion focused on Activating Events -- moments that trigger a negative or positive reaction, such as responding to a firefight or arguing with a spouse.
Dees used slides to identify activating events and led discussions about actual events in the Soldiers' lives. Topics ranged from car accidents to combat stories. Dees told the students to start recognizing when they're entering an activating event. Doing so will make them more aware and able to control their behavior.
Another conversation touched on Thinking Traps -- thoughts that bring bias into an event and interfere with the ability to completely analyze situations. An example is a deployed Soldier who assumes their spouse is committing adultery because the spouse didn't answer the Soldier's phone call home. A productive means of overcoming thinking traps, Maples said, is to remain patient, slow down and collect all the facts before rushing to judgment.
At the top of the pyramid is Real Time Resiliency -- which is the ability to overcome negative thoughts on the fly. Dees used his background in jiu jitsu to highlight the usefulness of this skill. He created a scenario where he is moments away from fighting a challenging opponent. Dees dared his students to give him negative reasons why he would lose. One-by-one Dees dismissed the Soldier's negativity by countering with legitimate reasons why he would be competitive. One Soldier went as far as intimating that Dee's opponent would kill him and Dees replied by saying the rules of jiu jitsu prevent death on the mat. The lesson of real time resiliency, as is the lesson in master resiliency training, is that we control our thoughts and the more we train them the better we'll be at overcoming hardships.
Spc. Marcus Camp, 464 Transportation Company (Medium Boat), water craft operator, called the entire course beneficial and said he has learned ways to conduct himself when under stress.
"I don't think a lot of people understand what resiliency training is all about, but when you actually learn about it, you see things in a new light," Camp said.
Lt. Col. Brian Zarchin, Headquarters Battalion, Fort Belvoir, commander, said garrison leadership will use feedback from the course to prepare for the second pilot course in March. One suggestion is providing more Belvoir-specific instruction that can relate to community members on post, Dees said. This includes incorporating talking points such as mass commuting to work.
Master Resilience Trainers from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and Fort Benning, Ga., attended the pilot course and provided tips for improvement.
Fort Benning has developed its own MRT program during the last year, which is a primary source of information for Fort Belvoir's initiative.
Master Sgt. Richard Smith, Fort Benning in-processing operations noncommissioned officer-in-charge, believes Belvoir is heading in the right direction.
"The two days went well," Smith said. "The participants demonstrated a nice increase of knowledge of the resiliency program and how they can help Soldiers become more resilient and put this (training) into everyday, practical, life."
Fort Belvoir garrison will conduct a second Master Resiliency Training pilot course for in-processing Soldiers March 13-14. The pilot course will help garrison leadership prepare the installation for the resiliency training program, which could start as soon as April. The initiative will mandate that in-processing Soldiers receive 16 hours of training during in-processing to the installation. The training will occur the day after the Fort Belvoir Newcomers' Briefing orientation each month. Members of other armed forces branches, Family members and Department of the Army civilians are not required to attend the pilot course or the actual program when it starts later this year. Zarchin said these community members can contact headquarters battalion if they're interested in participating.
For more information, call (703) 806-5696 or email michael.t.phillips.mil@mail.mil.
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