Have you ever looked at other people who are going through a great deal of struggle and hardship, and thought “I need to stop feeling sorry for myself”, and then downplay your own problems? It’s a common tendency for some people to compare their problems to those of others and decide that their own challenges are not as significant. This happened recently with a client of mine, Nicola, who was in an abusive relationship at the time when her brother developed a serious illness. Nicola was already at a low point in her life because of the impact of the challenging relationship she was in, but she felt responsible for providing emotional and practical support to her brother and family. This situation added an extra layer of stress onto her and she began to feel unable to cope. Nicola developed anxiety, felt extremely low and couldn’t switch off. She found it difficult to get to sleep at night, with thoughts of “worse-case-scenarios" running through her mind on repeat. This became a vicious cycle that went on for many months. However, because she didn’t feel that her problems were as “bad” as her brothers, she didn’t reach out for support from anyone. She hid how she was feeling from her family, putting on a brave face and supporting her family as much as she could. Fortunately, her brother began to recover Nicola’s health deteriorated further to the point where she became close to resigning from her job as she didn’t feel well enough to work. Thankfully, she eventually decided to leave her partner and started hypnotherapy sessions which helped her to be able to improve her confidence, mental health and a regain control over her life It's so important to recognise that everyone's experiences and challenges are valid, and comparing hardships is not always productive or fair. Seeking support and addressing your own problems is a healthy and important step in personal wellbeing. If this resonates with you and you feel ready to get some support, please reach out to me for a friendly chat.

Posted by Alison Snee at 2024-02-22 09:54:12 UTC