Women's Health May 22, 2026 0 Comments

Unlock This One Powerful Trait That Separates Winners from Everyone Else—Your Life Will Never Be the Same

Ever wonder why some people seem to breeze through life’s storms while the rest of us are caught clutching our umbrellas? Turns out, it’s not just luck or some secret superpower — it’s resilience, a mental muscle that some folks flex better than others. A fresh study on 82 people reveals that those with higher resilience actually have brains that are wired to handle negative info differently, giving them an edge in stressful moments. Intrigued? What exactly is resilience, and can you train yourself to get tougher against life’s curveballs? Spoiler alert: it’s not about being relentlessly upbeat but about mastering how you process the bad stuff without letting it run the show. Let me walk you through what the experts have uncovered and share some practical tips on bulking up your resilience game—because weathering life’s chaos doesn’t have to feel like an endless battle. LEARN MORE

3 min read

A small, new, cross-sectional study of 82 people found that more resilient people had a stronger response to regulating negative information.

Resilience is a trait that experts believe may help people respond to stress and mental health problems better than others.

If you’re not naturally super resilient, experts have tips for building up this muscle. You can start by framing adversity as a challenge you’ve conquered rather than merely a set of negative circumstances, and by labeling your emotions.

We all have that friend who seems to sail through life unbothered, even in the face of stress. But new research suggests there may be a reason why some people cope with stress better than others—and there may be psychological habits associated with greater resilience that you can take away from this.

The latest study suggests that more resilient people are better at preventing negative information from taking over, which might help them navigate stressful situations more effectively. But what is resilience, and how do you foster it? Here’s what psychologists say about the skill—and why it’s so valuable.

Meet the experts: Thea Gallagher, PsyD, clinical associate professor of psychology at NYU Langone Health; and Hillary Ammon, PsyD, a clinical psychologist at the Center for Anxiety and Women’s Emotional Wellness.

What did the study find?

For the small cross-sectional study, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, researchers recruited 82 participants and had them complete an experimental task. During the task, participants had to make cost-benefit decisions on which colors and geometric shapes might be linked to small gains and losses in money. They had to repeatedly decide during the experiment if they wanted to accept or reject certain offers.

While the participants were taking the test, the researchers put them through MRIs to measure their brain activity, specifically looking at changes in the levels of oxygen in their blood.

Researchers used that information in statistical models to analyze how much participants valued positive information more than negative information and how that aligned with their resilience.

After crunching all the data, the scientists found that people who gave slightly more weight to positive information over negative information when making decisions had higher levels of acceptance, an important factor in psychological resilience.

When researchers examined the imaging data, they found that the brains of people with higher resilience didn’t respond more strongly to positive information. Instead, their brains had a stronger response to negative information. Here’s the kicker: This response was especially strong in areas of the brain linked to cognitive control and information processing.

All this is to say that their brains were better at regulating negative information, which could explain why they were more likely to focus on the positives when making decisions.

“These differences in value processing could shape experiences and behavior in ways that make some individuals more resilient to stress and mental health problems than others,” the researchers wrote in the study.

What defines resilience?

“Resilience is the ability to adapt and recover in the face of stress, adversity, setbacks, or uncertainty,” explains Thea Gallagher, PsyD, clinical associate professor of psychology at NYU Langone Health. Resilience doesn’t mean avoiding tough emotions or being peppy all the time, though.

“Resilient people still experience disappointment, anxiety, frustration, and grief, but they are better able to tolerate those emotions, adjust to changing circumstances, and continue moving forward,” Gallagher says. “In many ways, resilience is less about toughness and more about psychological flexibility.”

But it’s possible to be a little or a lot resilient. “Resilience can fall on a spectrum, with some being more resilient, and others being less resilient, when faced with adversity or trauma,” says Hillary Ammon, PsyD, a clinical psychologist at the Center for Anxiety and Women’s Emotional Wellness.

How to become a more resilient person

Some people are just naturally better at being resilient than others, but that doesn’t mean you can’t increase your personal resilience.

“Healthy routines can set the groundwork for better mental health overall,” Ammon says. “Think quality sleep, healthy diet, and moving your body.” She also suggests trying to redirect your thinking to something a little more flexible when you’re facing adversity. Instead of thinking that bad things always happen to you, she suggests reframing a situation as “That was a tough meeting. I am proud of myself for getting through it.”

It can also be helpful to try to gradually build your tolerance for discomfort, Gallagher says. “Resilience develops when we face manageable challenges and learn that we can handle them, whether that’s having a difficult conversation, trying something new, setting a boundary, or taking a calculated risk,” she adds.

You can also practice labeling your emotions regularly, Ammon suggests. “Better awareness of what you are feeling can help you cope sooner and more effectively so that maybe you can intervene before you hit peak distress,” she says.

Overall, Gallagher recommends viewing resilience as a practical way to navigate stress. “It’s not the absence of stress—it’s the ability to experience stress without letting it completely dictate your decisions,” she says.

Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.