When your teen daughter is going through something difficult like an injury, a friendship struggle, a tough day at school, it’s natural for her mind to go straight to:

What if this gets worse?​
​What if I embarass myself? ​
​What if everything changes?

And often, underneath those thoughts is another question:

Do I like or dislike this thing happening?

For an injured athlete, the answer is probably a resounding No.

She doesn’t like missing practice.
Or watching her teammates connect without her.
And she certainly doesn't like the uncertainty of not knowing when she’ll return.

When life is being rude,

The questions our mind asks matters so much!

Can I handle this?

This is the question I explore in my latest blog.

It’s a small but significant shift, because it changes the conversation from “I hate this. I want it to go away.” or "I like this and I want to keep chasing it" to “Okay. This is what’s happening right now. Can I meet this moment?”

And the beautiful thing is that “Can I handle this?” is a muscle.

We can practice it in the big moments, but also in the incredibly ordinary ones.

A friend who hasn’t texted back.

A pop quiz you weren’t expecting.

A mistake at practice.

A difficult conversation.

Each time we discover I can handle this, we gather a little more evidence that we are capable of navigating discomfort, uncertainty and things we wouldn't have chosen.

And for a teen athlete recovering from injury, that growing sense of I can handle this can become incredibly powerful.

I wrote more about this and how parents can support their teen in building this resilience in this week’s blog.

This Week on Raising Resilient Teen Girls

Can I handle this? Growing your capacity to handle life's hard moments one question at a time. Check out the article

Accepting New Clients This Fall Chipo is helping girls who are feeling unseen and overwhelmed. Book a call with her here to find out more. Check out the post

The Happiness Path Get ready for an amazing fall by planting the seeds of confidence, connection, and self-trust. The Happiness Path, a 7-week group specially created for teen girls. Starts September 24th Join us this fall!