As life expectancy rises, many seniors experience a diminished quality of life, often influenced by negative age beliefs that impact health outcomes. Stereotype Embodiment Theory suggests that fostering positive age beliefs can enhance well-being and even extend life expectancy by 7.5 years. The SOARING Into Resilience workshop addresses the growing mental health crisis among healthcare professionals, residents, and their families by promoting resilience, belonging, and hope. Since 2000, Soaringwords has empowered over 500,000 individuals and healthcare professionals through evidence-based wellbeing initiatives, partnering with 196 hospitals and numerous health agencies worldwide. This interactive session will introduce participants to Posttraumatic Growth (PTG) and its five stages through immersive exercises designed to enhance personal and communal well-being. Attendees will explore research-backed strategies to improve resilience, connection, and purpose within long-term care settings. With proven success in healthcare environments, Soaringwords’ approach provides actionable tools for fostering emotional and mental well-being among aging populations and their caregivers.

Learning Objectives

1. Explore research metrics for measuring the impact of wellbeing on residents and the care team
2. Engage in immersive exercises to identify personal experiences with the five stages of Posttraumatic Growth and understand how these stages promote resilience after setbacks
3. Dispel the three most common “Resilience Myths” and apply positive psychology to enhance the wellbeing of long-term care residents, staff, and families