incredible-marketing Arrow

Showing Compassion to Others (Even When It’s Hard)

One of the beautiful aspects of any recovery program, or even of life, is that we meet so many different people. All of these people have different types of personalities, experiences, and backgrounds.

On occasion, we encounter someone who we don’t particularly enjoy being around. They may have strong character traits that we find to be displeasing or make us uncomfortable.

In these situations, we may find it difficult to be compassionate towards them, and it hinders our ability to connect. We all long for kindness and understanding from those around us, and even when it seems impossible, there are ways to extend this, even to people who grind your gears at the first impression. 

We All Have Flaws

You are not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. We all have our differences and aspects of our personalities that won’t work perfectly well with other people.

That is not an excuse to be cruel or unkind. Remember that if someone isn’t kind or compassionate towards you, that says more about them than it does about you.

This works the other way around, as well. If you don’t extend grace and empathy towards someone else, it says more about you than it does about them.

Everyone has insecurities, and nobody is perfect. Imagine if you were introduced to someone for the first time, and all they could see were your imperfections.

That would hurt you very deeply and make connecting with them impossible. You would feel vulnerable and paranoid, and they would never get the chance to know who you truly are.

Don’t take away this chance from others. Look past the flaws, and try to see the beauty in their strengths. Show some patience, and you may ultimately find that you have more similarities than differences, and can become close friends!

Walk a Mile in Their Shoes

If you are struggling to tolerate or empathize with someone, try to change your perspective. Consider their past experiences and what they have gone through to reach this moment in time.

We all have walked different paths in life. Some of us hold more trauma or pain than others.

Many times, the things we have gone through shape our personality and how we interact with ourselves and others. Think about the reason behind someone’s behavior.

Sometimes our personalities are a result of our need for survival. If they are acting pompous, pretentious, or obnoxious, it could be a defense mechanism.

They may have adapted to a situation where they felt weak or vulnerable in the past, and these character traits are created out of fear. Perhaps you encounter someone who speaks only through sarcasm or hurtful remarks and teasing.

Suppose that they were treated in this same way by someone they were very close with. They may have learned this behavior in order to protect themselves from others and to mask the pain of their past experiences.

There is good in everyone, sometimes we just need to give them some time and compassion to discover it and let them feel comfortable being themselves. We would want the same treatment and kindness towards us. Give out into the world what you want to receive back

At The Guest House Ocala, our experience with addiction and recovery makes us uniquely equipped to be able to understand the struggles you’re experiencing. We’re here to help. Call 855-483-7800 today for more information on our treatment programs.