“I don’t deserve to feel this way.”
I hear this phrase a lot, from myself and from others. “I don’t deserve to feel this way. There are so many other people out there who are way worse off than I am. Who am I to complain? To feel sad?”
Does it matter?
If everyone thought that they didn’t have the right to ask for help and to talk to others because they didn’t deserve to, then only the most miserable person/thing/creature with the worst life in the entire universe would be able to complain. No one else would be able to deserve feeling like they have a right to complain about something, or ask for help.
So of course this isn’t how things should be. Everyone deserves to feel sad. Everyone deserves the right to ask for help. When you find yourself thinking, “I shouldn’t tell anyone, because I don't have the right to bother others with my problems,” think again. I think a lot of people can’t find the courage to find help because they push their thoughts away into the back of their minds—they believe they don’t need help because their problems seem insignificant to the problems of others. Believe me, the things we learn in school, books, and even from other people are mostly exaggerated circumstances. Not everyone has to feel depressed because they have experienced the death of a family member. Not everyone has to feel depressed because they’ve suffered an abusive childhood. Depression can come from pressure due to schoolwork, pressure due to peers, the weather, confusion in life, or sometimes, no apparent cause whatsoever. That doesn’t mean that anyone has less of a right to feel depressed.
Everyone has the right to ask for help, and to feel like he or she has the right to find someone who will listen. Always remember that.
I hear this phrase a lot, from myself and from others. “I don’t deserve to feel this way. There are so many other people out there who are way worse off than I am. Who am I to complain? To feel sad?”
Does it matter?
If everyone thought that they didn’t have the right to ask for help and to talk to others because they didn’t deserve to, then only the most miserable person/thing/creature with the worst life in the entire universe would be able to complain. No one else would be able to deserve feeling like they have a right to complain about something, or ask for help.
So of course this isn’t how things should be. Everyone deserves to feel sad. Everyone deserves the right to ask for help. When you find yourself thinking, “I shouldn’t tell anyone, because I don't have the right to bother others with my problems,” think again. I think a lot of people can’t find the courage to find help because they push their thoughts away into the back of their minds—they believe they don’t need help because their problems seem insignificant to the problems of others. Believe me, the things we learn in school, books, and even from other people are mostly exaggerated circumstances. Not everyone has to feel depressed because they have experienced the death of a family member. Not everyone has to feel depressed because they’ve suffered an abusive childhood. Depression can come from pressure due to schoolwork, pressure due to peers, the weather, confusion in life, or sometimes, no apparent cause whatsoever. That doesn’t mean that anyone has less of a right to feel depressed.
Everyone has the right to ask for help, and to feel like he or she has the right to find someone who will listen. Always remember that.