So I'm going through a little medical issue (don't worry...I'm not dying...at least I don't think I am). I've discovered that for the last few days I've felt very heavy emotionally. Obviously I'm not myself. My apartment is a disaster and completely not up to my standards. My school work seems to be in a mound that I will never accomplish because I've spent the last several days of my life sleeping. What's more concerning to me, however, is that I've felt completely alone. I've had to depend on other people's help from time to time. However, there are times at which I feel I could drop dead and no one would take notice. I reach out to get mediocre responses and sometimes feel I'm a nuisance to people who I would call my good friends. I'm sure this state of mind has something to do with being sick, but it's not fun. In some cases, the emotional struggle is more concerning than the physical one.
A few weeks ago, I had a friend who was going through something similar. I got frequent texts which was out of the ordinary and tried my best to reply in an upbeat tone. It was obvious to me that he was lonely and even more obvious that I didn't understand what he was going through. I tried hard to be an encouragement, but I often felt that my attempts fell flat because he never seemed to improve in his demeanor or messages. In certain points in time, I became exhausted in hearing about his pain and yet not being able to offer anything to console him. I might've dwindled in my responses after awhile unable to offer anything different from what I did the last time we'd spoke.
I can now say I can see his situation in a different light now that I've had to struggle with something similar. While I try hard not to complain about my situation, I'm sure that my misery comes across quite clear. People may currently be finding my communication exhausting since they can't offer any kind of consolation for my struggle. They might also be so far removed from my suffering that my communication is nothing more than an interruption to their otherwise productive day. It's true, sometimes we really don't know what people are going through unless we walk around awhile in their shoes. My resolve now is to be more diligent in my attempts to be an encouragement to my friends who are suffering even when I feel I'm unsuccessful. I would challenge you to do the same because someday in the future you might have to endure the same battle and wish your friends were there to fight the battle with you. And a word of wisdom when the time comes...sometimes your friend doesn't need you to say anything to fix the problem...sometimes your friend just needs someone to listen and cry with them. The point isn't to try and understand how they feel or how to fix it, the point is to understand that they are hurting and hurt with them.
A few weeks ago, I had a friend who was going through something similar. I got frequent texts which was out of the ordinary and tried my best to reply in an upbeat tone. It was obvious to me that he was lonely and even more obvious that I didn't understand what he was going through. I tried hard to be an encouragement, but I often felt that my attempts fell flat because he never seemed to improve in his demeanor or messages. In certain points in time, I became exhausted in hearing about his pain and yet not being able to offer anything to console him. I might've dwindled in my responses after awhile unable to offer anything different from what I did the last time we'd spoke.
I can now say I can see his situation in a different light now that I've had to struggle with something similar. While I try hard not to complain about my situation, I'm sure that my misery comes across quite clear. People may currently be finding my communication exhausting since they can't offer any kind of consolation for my struggle. They might also be so far removed from my suffering that my communication is nothing more than an interruption to their otherwise productive day. It's true, sometimes we really don't know what people are going through unless we walk around awhile in their shoes. My resolve now is to be more diligent in my attempts to be an encouragement to my friends who are suffering even when I feel I'm unsuccessful. I would challenge you to do the same because someday in the future you might have to endure the same battle and wish your friends were there to fight the battle with you. And a word of wisdom when the time comes...sometimes your friend doesn't need you to say anything to fix the problem...sometimes your friend just needs someone to listen and cry with them. The point isn't to try and understand how they feel or how to fix it, the point is to understand that they are hurting and hurt with them.
1 comments:
oh sweetheart. i had no idea since i don't visit this site very often; you are very important to me. seriously. for many reasons -& u can always call or write know I'm here 4 ya. really. hate feeling that way - i can def. relate ; hope ur lil better by now.
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