Peer specialists and individuals with mental health issues possess many unique qualities. As a collective, as a movement, and most importantly as a people, we are in recovery and we are resilient. The path we travel is often described as a journey of recovery. With patience and resilience, we will not only survive, we will thrive.
Resilience is the ability to recover quickly from hardship. It is also the process of adapting in the face of adversity, trauma, or tragedy. When life becomes overwhelming, I turn to techniques that help me manage. One such method is deep breathing: inhaling slowly, holding for five seconds, and then exhaling gradually to release tension. In these moments, my resilience and curiosity come together, reminding me that crises can sometimes lead to unexpected growth.
“There is peace even in the storm,” wrote Vincent van Gogh. Willa Cather observed, “There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in the storm.” Both insights capture the truth that human beings can withstand turbulent times. Peer specialists often attribute resilience to developing and sustaining positive traits shared by people across the world. We strive for strength against every challenge, especially those that test our capacity to endure. This is the challenge before us, and nothing less will suffice.
When storms strike, it can be difficult to see beyond the immediate moment. Panic rises, sweat pours, and my body trembles. All I want is to escape, as though retreating under a rock. At times, I search for someone to blame, distancing myself from responsibility and consequence. Yet even then, I try to focus on the good I have experienced, letting my mind drift towards calmer spaces. Reaching out to others is also vital. We do not need to face these moments alone. Members of our peer collaborative stand behind one another, offering the support we want and need.
Sometimes I draw strength from past achievements. Revisiting these memories does not always provide comfort, but it is worth the effort. At times they restore my calmness, reconnecting me with my sense of self. Compassion and enthusiasm for peer support have been central to this process. They remind me what it means to be resilient, to recover, and to survive with the help of appropriate services and encouragement.
Curiosity also strengthens resilience. It allows me to engage with a wide range of people, including my fellow peer specialists, authority figures, and those who choose different life paths. Above all, curiosity helps me connect with friends and family, who play a central role in sustaining resilience.
I am currently in long-term rehabilitation following hip surgeries in April 2023 and June 2024, which left me struggling with walking, driving, and many daily tasks. During rehabilitation, I had to give up my apartment and face the uncertainty of finding a new place to live. In September 2025, I moved into assisted living, a new challenge that I continue to face with determination. I still hope to one day find my own home. Through it all, my aim remains not only to survive but to thrive.
In earlier years, I learned to move beyond mere tolerance of others and became more genuinely curious. This curiosity taught me that we all have much to share and much to learn. While I try not to jump to conclusions or respond irrationally, living with obsessive-compulsive disorder has made this an ongoing challenge. As the Borg in Star Trek declared, “Resistance is futile.” Yet with time, my reactions have become less intense and less frequent.
Curiosity and resilience work hand in hand. When I feel curious, I feel stronger, and when I feel resilient, my curiosity grows. Albert Einstein once said, “I have no special talent, I am only passionately curious.” Oscar Wilde, in contrast, remarked, “The public have an insatiable curiosity to know everything, except what is worth knowing.” Together, these perspectives reflect the power and paradox of curiosity.
Dr David Lyons of Stanford University has explored this link, writing that “curiosity in our lives, the lives of others, and in our community creates a foundation for resilience. This becomes a springboard in all aspects of life: body, mind, spirit, and social domains. In addition to cultivating our strengths to foster resilience, we can also train ourselves physiologically to gain resilience.” He adds that “information-seeking and sensory types of curiosity play a role in the maintenance of life-long resilience.”
My storms still come and go. I live with several diagnoses, none of which I ever asked for, and I remain in recovery from years of mental health issues. Yet despite these burdens, I continue to survive. Most importantly, being alive gives me the chance to begin again. Resilience makes that possible.
With the right opportunities and resources, many of us can, as Gloria Gaynor famously sang, “survive.” But more than that, we can persevere as a society and thrive. Through resilience, curiosity, and self-awareness, I will continue moving forward. I am an individual, a human being with mental health issues, and above all, a person of the human race. And like all of us in this vast universe, I hold the ability not only to survive, but to thrive.
Howard Diamond is a certified peer specialist from Long Island.