Maybe the silver lining is that our ability to suffer and feel pain is as great and intense as it is for joy, maybe we don't need silver lining just to survive the storm and learn detachment to help us get to the other side, maybe empathy is a gift and a curse, maybe it is very important to build clear boundaries to protect our mental health and be able to recharge, maybe our vulnerability is power, and true power is to know when to let go, just maybe...

Something I try to remember when I feel this way - We cannot as an individual fix all of the f’d up things in this world, but we can use our empathy every day in small ways that make a big difference to the people we interact with in any capacity (while continuing to advocate about the big things!). ❤️‍🩹

Yeah, it's cold outside.

As a therapist, I totally understand the feeling of collapsing under the weight of my own empathy. Those are the moments I step away from the things that weigh most heavily. I go on breaks. The problems will be there when I get back but I will be better equipped to deal with them. Touch the earth, play with a child, read a book. Remember what it feels like to get little snippets of joy. Those moments will fuel me and my future empathy.

People aren’t asleep anymore. Public opinion is shifting. We can and have to do better than accepting the status quo.

I’ve been getting really into tarot cards 🤍 they keep me hopeful and I find the readings to be a really helpful guiding light

I hate humans. I find solace in vanlifing, trying to connect with nature as much as I can. In an unfortunate way, your post is comforting, because it means we aren't alone in feeling this way.

I get what you’re saying. The only way I feel a bit better is if I’m doing something to fight back, or looking for new ways to help. Other times, the cruelty I see is so overwhelming that I’m enraged and devastated. It feels like there’s such a disconnect among humans and the only way to be emotionally okay with everything is to be evil or a sociopath. Then I feel I don’t belong on this planet.

Take a walk. When you see someone wish them happiness. Wish them freedom from suffering. Don’t say anything, just feel the desire that they be at peace. Works for me every time I get too bound up in my own fears.

Knowing there are others feeling similarly hopeless, is maybe in some way… hopeful? I hope so, anyway. Never lose that empathy❤️‍🩹😊❤️‍🩹