Does Hope Ease Pain Or Cause It?

You are sitting in the waiting room of the doctor’s office.

Your significant other is in the other room speaking with the doctor now.

You watch the clock counting the seconds, hoping that they are healthy and there is nothing to worry about.

You glance at the coffee table in the center with the outdated magazines.

You look at the receptionist behind the desk punching away at their keyboard without a rest.

Why is everything in this room offensive?

Why does everything bother you right now?

Moment later your spouse comes out with a glum look on their face. They don’t have to say anything.

The scenario in which you both feared would become reality has come to fruition.

They are sick and you don’t know what to do.

Have you ever been in a situation in which a loved one is sick?

Where the doctors have said that there is very little they can do and that the patient has a very small chance of recovering?

Maybe you have experienced this or maybe you haven’t, but if you ever do have to deal with this impossible moment how do you respond?

Do you become despondent and lose any hope for a better outcome?

Do you hold on to hope that your parent, child, wife, husband, brother, sister pulls through and will live out the rest of their days continuing to make memories with you?

What happens if the impossible does occur and you put all of your hope into the fleeting possibility that everything will turn all right?

Is it better to lose hope and save yourself more heartbreak? Is it still better to be hopeful even if there are no guarantees that the outcome will be positive?

Does hope ease pain or cause it?

Join Oleg and Nancy as they discuss the possibilities of hope and the double edged sword it can appear to be at times.

Please add to the discussion by adding your thoughts to the comments below.