Painful Moments Are Often the Start of Something Amazing

Painful moments and painful seasons are inevitable in all our lives.

They are part of being human.

What is in our control is how we show up for the painful moments.

What we do

What we say

and what we choose to think and feel about both the pain and the situation.

In my experience, painful moments are often the start of something amazing.

Even very painful moments.

Childbirth would be a great example.

Medical school is another great example.

Many people describe cancer in this way.

Mental health struggles in a family certainly can turn out this way.

The pandemic also likely will turn out this way.

Painful life events often catapult us onto a new journey because they help us see both what’s truly important and often see glimpses of what makes us come alive.

Seeing a painful moment as the start of something amazing doesn’t take away the pain or the import of the thing itself.

It merely connects us with hope and restores a little agency in an often mostly out-of-control situation.

This week I had several opportunities to reflect on some painful moments in the last few years of my life.

I saw clearly how these painful moments and painful seasons actually did turn into amazing things.

I learned and grew from the painful seasons. Ultimately in very significant and transformative ways.

My children learned and grew from them, my husband learned and grew from them.

And all my clients now also are benefitting from my journey as well.

From both the wisdom I gained from the journey and from the career pivot that happened because of them.

Pain often leads to courage and authentic action.

If you are in pain now, as I know many of you are, you are not alone.

Help is out there.

With some courage and guidance (two things I needed a lot of), amazing just may be ahead.