DAY 23 | WE DON’T HAVE TO KNOW SOMEONE’S PAIN TO LISTEN 💜

When someone tells us about something painful, we sometimes respond:

“I know how you feel.”

Maybe we have experienced something similar.

Maybe we are trying to comfort them.

But even when our experiences appear similar, we cannot assume that we know exactly what another person is feeling.

Every person’s story is shaped by their own experiences, relationships, circumstances and ways of coping.

That is why sometimes a better response is:

“I may not understand everything you’re going through, but I’m here to listen.”

It does something important.

It leaves room for the person to tell their own story.

We don’t have to compare.

We don’t have to compete over who has suffered more.

We don’t have to bring our own experience into every conversation.

We can simply listen.

Changing the narrative on suicide means respecting lived experiences as individual experiences.

Someone doesn’t need to have the same story as us for their pain to matter.

And we don’t need to completely understand someone’s pain before we choose to respond with compassion.

💜 Listen without comparing. Make room for the story.

#ChangingTheNarrativeOnSuicide #StartTheConversation #SuicidePrevention #MentalHealthMatters #Malawi