Life and Adversity

Life adversities can be viewed as bumps or mountains along the road of life journey. I believe with a positive perspective adversities are meant to make us stronger, the bigger the adversity the stronger we can become. As far fetch as this may seem when facing advertise such as not having money, losing a car and home, losing a love one, or being diagnose with a terminal disease, it is not impossible to overcome adversities.

When reflecting on past adversities we can sometimes see the positive outcomes. For example, a person may look back and say “if I did not lose my job I would not have gone back to college and now have a successful career.”  It is easier to see the positive outcomes after facing adversities, than it is while in the midst of adversities. Initially losing a job can be difficult to cope with, the obvious concerns become the focus of attention. For example, how to paid bills; how to buy food; where to find another job; how long will it take to find another job; and how to survive while looking for a job.

The initial reaction of losing a job is normal, but there comes a point when a person has to make a positive and conscious decision to move forward with the intention of changing their current situation or reality. Obviously there are instances when adversities are not that easy to overcome, it may take more time to mentally process significant life changing event.  But with intentional thoughts and actions it is possible overtime.  

The meaning a person attaches to life events or experiences can also impact how a person copes with life adversities.  Losing a job is obviously frightening so naturally there would be concerns. The breaking point occurs when a person reality becomes, “I am not going to find another job, no one will hire me, I am going to be homeless, or I am not going to able to survive”. I think this is a result of when people attach failure to the event of losing a job; they interpret losing their job as being a failure.

As human beings we have the mental capacity to change our perception or realities if we choose to. However, most people believe that they have no control of the events that occur in their lives. That is true to a certain extent; we cannot control the occurrences of events, but we can control how we interpret or perceive these events. We can choose to give up and let adversities overcome us or move forward and overcome adversities.

This is by no means a quick fix formula for coping with adversities, it is simply my way. As individuals we all have to find out what works for us when coping with life changing events. For example, what coping methods we can use, what strategies can we implement, what actions can we take, and what thought processes can we develop. Facing adversities allows us to acknowledge a setback, to understand the reality of that setback, and to choose another possibility of reality to counter that setback. Choosing another possible reality will allow us to explore other possibilities and discover new paths. As my reality changes I can see adversities as minor or major detours in life.