It's Going to be Okay

Psst. Hey you. Yeah, I’m talking to you. To the person who is sitting quietly, right now, contemplating life and how in the world you got to the point you are at this very moment. The road has been a long one. Everything and everyone is grating on whatever nerves you feel you may have left. Money, job, school, kids, and daily life stresses you out before you even sit up in your bed first thing in the morning. Your house is a mess, your car is a mess, and you honestly couldn’t tell someone when you remember actually eating your last full meal. You are tired. Sleep is the only thing that sounds half-way decent to you right now. I know. I get ya. But I want to be the one to tell you the one thing you find hard to believe right now: it’s going to be okay.

I know! I know, it sounds cliché, and you just rolled your eyes at me. I have no idea what you are going through right now. While that may be true, I do understand the emotions that you are experiencing. Why? How? Well, because I am feeling them too. And with that, let me share a little something with you…

People struggle. This is not news. We all have problems that we share with others, and we all have problems that we keep to ourselves, suffering in silence and solitude with whatever reasons we may have for not disclosing our battles. Big or small, battles bring a person to their knees. Many people question their ability to continue on, and some just don’t bother trying…and end their own lives. Everyone handles stress, pain, grief, and of these other strong emotions differently. But to those who feel alone, rest assured we have ALL been there at least once in our lives. SOMETHING has affected every adult on this planet (and many children), putting them in a warzone of their own, testing their strengths and exposing their weaknesses. Nobody truly knows what other people are going through, and oftentimes people who live together in the same home have no clue what the other may be struggling with internally.

Whatever it is that you are going through right now, be it health; money; family; job; school; or even just some hormonal imbalance putting you into a depressed state, the struggle truly is real. And, as real as it is the struggle is hard. I know, because I, too, am struggling.

So, here we are, you and I, suffering alone…silently…whether it is because we choose not to share our pain or because we tried and nobody cared to truly hear us. The tears that are shed daily, the strange sensation inside that scares us because it is not pain anymore, but the terrible reality that we don’t feel the pain like before. Numbness is setting in. The ability to feel, along with the desire to care, is vanishing and we are powerless to stop it.

Now, for those of you who may not know what this feels like, I can assure you that you know someone who does. All around us are people who suffer from depression in one form or another. It is a scary place to be. There is no certainty in life when depression is present. There are only questions, and many of them are not good ones. Many times the depressed want someone to understand, but they will not be the ones to make a move to be around people. No, their conscious mind doesn’t want to be around other humans, and they will avoid as much as possible. Most of them have to function in a normal, daily routine, however, and will be around other people. My challenge to you is to Be There for them. Start a conversation, simple as it may be. Listen to them when they talk. Don’t respond with “I don’t know what to say”, “I wish I could help”, or anything like that. Even if you don’t have a solution, help them find one in your conversations. This is when we tell each other that it’s going to be okay…and mean it.

You will be okay. Even if everything is not okay right now. There may not seem to be an end to the dark days you are in, and every moment weighs heavy on the heart and mind, but relief will come! Even though even an hour seems like an eternity, and days and weeks are even longer, you can hold on and make it through. And when you do, I will be at the end of that road waiting to embrace you and tell you that you did it… just like me.