“To draw an analogy: a man’s suffering is similar to the behavior of a gas.  If a certain quantity of gas is pumped into an empty chamber, it will fill the chamber completely and evenly, no matter how big the chamber.  Thus suffering completely fills the human soul and conscious mind, no matter whether the suffering is great or little. Therefore the “size” of human suffering is absolutely relative.”

Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning

This week I have experienced something that feels how I imagine it feels to pour acid into a wound.  Incredibly painful, raw and ugly.  It got me thinking about suffering and how we manage our own suffering.

I do believe in taking responsibility for the role you play in any situation, however there comes a point when enough is enough and you decide to walk away having gained from the experience.  It does not mean you have to or have to continue to re-live the experience; the sooner you can stop the healthier it is for you because PTSD is very real.

It becomes about carrying on.  Carrying on in a way that supports you and having learned from the experience.  It becomes about holding your head up knowing that you are not that experience nor are you defined by that experience.  And finally giving yourself permission to let the suffering go, because it is no longer necessary, and to allow what comes next.

What is it that has come out of your suffering?  What is it that you have learned about yourself through the painful process of suffering?  And what are you doing to fully let your suffering go?