Most people will have to deal with significant personal challenges over the course of their lives, all of which will change them in some way. While some of these situations or experiences might be considered difficult or even exciting learning experiences, others are downright disastrous and can change the course of a person’s life forever.
If you’ve been through any (or all) of the challenges below and you’re still functional enough to be reading this article, you’re far stronger than you realize.
1. Devastating loss.
Loss comes in many forms and always takes its toll on someone’s life. Furthermore, just about everyone will experience it at some point, whether it’s the loss of a parent, a partner/spouse, a child, or even a dream. When it happens, it can shatter a person to the core — whether the pain and grief arrive immediately or creep up after a period of numbness and disassociation.
For many people, experiencing this kind of loss does indeed tear them apart but also gives them the opportunity to move on from their trauma with a new sense of perspective. In fact, this article in Psychology Today touches upon how people can even experience immense growth and “wholeness” after being broken by a terrible loss.
2. Life-threatening or chronic illness.
Being diagnosed with a life-threatening illness is extremely challenging, and the process of healing from it (or learning to live with a chronic condition) can be just as difficult, if not more so. First, there’s the shock and fear that comes from realizing that The Thing is far more serious than you wanted, and then the realization hits that even after treatment, life will never be the same again.
This is as true for someone who has to change their entire lifestyle to deal with a chronic condition as it is for a person who’s had a dramatic body change due to surgery, amputation, etc. The effort it takes to live life to its fullest despite chronic illness or pain takes an extraordinary amount of strength and resilience.
3. Abject poverty.
Few things can wreak havoc on a person’s body, mind, and spirit like being destitute. Living in poverty doesn’t just mean that you can’t afford the new phone or shoes that you’ve been wanting: it also means you can’t get the nutrition your body needs to function properly. According to News Medical, that creates a domino effect in your health, in which your immune system suffers, and you can’t afford dental care (which leads to greater illness), all of which contribute to making your entire existence an absolute nightmare.
Having experienced this kind of poverty firsthand, I know what it’s like to go without and how its ill effects can wreak havoc on your health for years — even long after you are in a more financially stable situation. If you’ve been through this and haven’t just survived but have developed greater gratitude and compassion as a result, that speaks volumes about both your character and your strength.
4. A severe accident.
Whether it’s a vehicular crash or a severe accident at work, a situation that could have killed you is a sobering thing to experience. Hell, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO) nearly 400 million workers are injured annually, of which 3 million die every year due to work-related injuries. Furthermore, around a million people die in car accidents annually.
Most of us will experience at least one severe accident in our lifetime, and even if we emerge fairly unscathed (or with minor injuries), the experience itself is a jarring one. Depending on the accident, it could even involve being trapped for hours and waiting to be rescued or dealing with significant recovery time. If you’ve already experienced this, and you’re still here and fighting, that’s pretty amazing of you.
5. Being lost in unfamiliar territory.
If you’ve ever been lost in your own city, then you likely had a brief moment of panic before getting your bearings so you could find your way back home (or to your chosen destination). That type of panic gets significantly more intense if you’re in a foreign country or in the middle of nowhere without familiar landmarks to guide you.
Hundreds of hikers and explorers die annually due to exposure, dehydration, or accidental poisoning, not to mention things like fatal snake or insect bites. Have you experienced being lost somewhere completely unfamiliar? If so, kudos for making it out alive! That takes immense resilience and personal fortitude.
6. Violent circumstances.
Most of us watch action movies on a regular basis and consider how we would respond if we found ourselves with a gun to our head or if a bomb went off nearby. Living through that kind of scenario in real life is very different from the movies, however, and experiencing such a challenge can affect people in a variety of ways.
A great deal also depends on when the person experienced this type of violence. For example, a child who experiences violence for a protracted period of time and has no option but to tolerate it will process it (and the rest of their life) differently than an adult who experiences it briefly, but the effects of these experiences are extremely long-lasting according to recent studies — including in multigenerational gene changes.
Nobody should have to experience that kind of violence. If you did and you’re still doing okay, then you’re far stronger and more resilient than most will ever be able to understand.
7. Heartbreak.
Few things hurt as much as discovering that the person you love more than anything in the world doesn’t love you the same way — especially if you’ve been romantically involved with them and suddenly they don’t want anything to do with you anymore. Heartbreak can shatter a person’s spirit, and many people never recover from having been hurt so badly.
If you’ve been through heartbreak like this and survived, that speaks volumes about your resilience and strength of will. Even more impressive is if you’ve been through this kind of hurt, allowed yourself time to heal from it, and were then brave enough to love again. Quite often, the love we have after a heartbreak is even more powerful because we don’t take it for granted. We know how special and rare it is and have immense gratitude that we’ve had the opportunity to experience it again.
8. Crippling depression or mental illness.
According to the World Health Organization, over 700 thousand people commit suicide every year, and the people who are most likely to take their own lives are those who struggle with depression and other mental illnesses. These conditions aren’t to be taken lightly, as they affect every single aspect of a person’s life and, by extension, the lives of those around them.
Apparently, over 280 million people worldwide live with depression, from seasonal affective disorders and postpartum depression through to major depressive disorders that don’t respond well to treatment. If you struggle with depression or other mental illness, and you’re still here today, then you’re stronger than most people will ever know.
Final thoughts…
You’ve undoubtedly grown exponentially from having experienced even just one or two of the challenges we’ve touched upon here. This puts you in a unique position to be able to empathize with — and potentially help — others who are going through the same thing. After all, you’ve not only survived these hardships, but you’re also doing better than many would have expected. You’re making the best of what you have to work with, and you may be able to help others do so in turn. You never know: sharing what you’ve been through may save someone else’s life one day.
