Finding Meaning in Suffering | Bradley D Davidson

Are you suffering? Have you ever felt you were drowning in the overwhelming events of life? Are you wondering how you will survive? Viktor Frankl, a noted twentieth century neurologist and psychiatrist, was a survivor. Frankl was imprisoned during the holocaust and, while most of his family members were killed, Frankl survived. After three years in several concentration camps, Frankl was freed and returned to Austria where he focused his life on the psychology of healing. He also was a respected thinker on the topic of the importance of finding meaning in life. Frankl famously developed this equation:

D = S – M

In this equation, D stands for despair, S stands for suffering, and M stands for meaning. Think about that equation. Despair is a result of suffering without meaning. To put it another way, even the most difficult events in our lives will not destroy us if we find the meaning in the events and the meaning in our lives.

The Critical Difference

During his time in the concentration camps, Frankl noticed something very interesting. As he watched other prisoners, he observed that the individuals who survived were the ones who seemed to have focused on the future and the positive possibilities that existed. They sought to understand the meaning of their suffering. They dreamed of leaving and going back to care for their families. They dreamed of life after the concentration camp. They imagined what their experience would teach them about life after the concentration camp. Here’s the critical difference: Those prisoners who stayed future focused and who found meaning in their suffering had a better chance of survival.

Leveraging Meaning in Your Life

We do not usually have choices about what happens to us. Accidents happen. Illnesses happen. Job loss happens. However, we CAN choose how we respond. We can choose to focus on the negative and slip into despair or we can choose to focus on the positive meaning the experience can have for us. Here are some questions to ask yourself when bad things are happening:

What can this situation teach me?
How am I viewing life in new ways through this lens of suffering?
When this situation is behind me, how will I be a better person because of this experience?
How will the ‘new me’ which emerges from this situation be unique in the world? How can I use this uniqueness in service to others?
What will be the first thing I do once this suffering has eased?

There are thousands of other questions to ask yourself. The key is to think about the meaning of your suffering. Just as Frankl let his suffering shape some of his greatest thinking about meaning in life, you too can find ways to let your suffering shape you and what you contribute to the world. I cannot promise you will hurt less but by focusing on the meaning in your suffering, you can emerge a new creature, in a unique position to live your one-of-a-kind purpose.

Think on these things.