We all go through tough times now and then. Hopefully, we survive and become stronger because of the experience. But sometimes we do more than benefit personally from this adversity. Some really special people, and I work with several, use their personal experiences to help others. They share things which many people might consider embarrassing or shameful with others who are at a similar bad point in their existence. It is as if the person is in a deep well with no obvious way of getting out, and someone throws them a rope.
Recently, I overheard a conversation between a staff member and a patient who was so desperate for help that he was seriously considering suicide. This staff member shared intimate details of her own experience with desperation and how a friend threw her a rope. I suppose one might call this an example of “paying it forward.”
I’m not sure I could open my heart to another the way she did, but I hope that if I ever have the opportunity to throw someone a rope that I won’t hesitate.