Turning Pain Into Progress

Life on planet Earth will forever be touched by pain and tragedy. No one is immune, regardless of race, belief or socioeconomic status. Much of the time we allow this pain to suck us in and keep us in stasis. We sit in it, mired in the muck of it until something or someone comes along to shake us from our stupor and help us remember the fundamental fact of life: it is meant to be lived.

Pain can become an excuse for dispassionate inaction. It is used as an excuse to disregard the outside world in the same way that a small child thinks you cannot see them if they cannot see you. It is (perhaps most unfortunate of all) an excuse to hurt others. We quite often will give another person a proverbial pass for terrible behavior because we think we may be just as bad to others if we ourselves were in the seat of suffering.

Inasmuch as pain can be a great burden, it can also be a fantastic motivator. You see, in the crucial moment we decide for ourselves which role it will fill in our lives. Pain reacts differently in the hearts and minds of different people, but in the time after the initial reaction our choices determine its’ effect. Pain can pull you down or it can push you into action.

Understand that the source of the pain can determine the initial course of action. If your pain is the result of a relationship gone awry, you first must distance yourself from the relationship. Then you have to become very intentional in your effort to redefine what qualities you are willing to accept within a relationship. If the source of your pain is an addiction or compulsion, the initial step is to stop drinking, using or acting out. Once you are removed from the haze of the high, you can look upon your life through clear eyes and with humility and open-mindedness you can move towards a better life.

Things become a little more difficult when the external “sources” of pain are stripped away and you begin to get honest with yourself about the fact that you may actually be the source of your own pain. Once you have come to realize this you have taken the first huge step in the direction of turning your pain into personal progress. You must know and understand why you’ve done the things you have done, and then you must address those root issues humbly and with a willingness to change.

Pain can fuel progress or paralysis, and it’s never too late to change the road you’re on as a result of making the choice of allowing your pain to consume you. Life is a series of choices. Even the most important of those choices can be redeemable when you decide that you want something better. Choose progress, and by so doing choose to live your own authentic life rather than settling for simply being alive.