Personal tragedy is a daily occur rence for many in our audiences, even if not for ourselves. If we aren't experiencing pain presently, we realize that we have and will again. I recently watched as the CEO of a large corporation spoke to his distributors about the problems and mistakes the organization had made in the recent past. His optimism for the future thinly veiled his anguish. Not all people or organizations that hurt admit it.
Denial is common and dysfunction is a symptom of unresolved pain.
Many, myself included, have tried to deal with the pain by ignoring it or anestheticizing it with activity. Both are costly and ineffective strategies. For many reasons, we are unwilling to deal with the reality of pain. In reality, they are usually the healthiest if they can hurt and move through the pain instead of becoming mired in it. An outsider can help by making it o.k. to admit pain.