Most of us have experienced a "broken heart" at least once during our life and know that its pain is long-lasting. But there are, I believe, some advantages to having endured this universal trauma.
First of all, we learn a lot about ourselves in the course of a failed love affair and are able to use that knowledge when nurturing another relationship. Secondly, personal pain fuels our capacity for empathy, allowing us to understand and comfort friends and family members when they have a similar experience and need our emotional support. Finally, heartache and its sequelae have inspired much of the literature, music and artwork throughout human history; had we not endured the pain ourselves, we could not fully appreciate these cultural forms of expression.
This intellectual reasoning may be helpful in the long run but does little to diminish heartache for those in the midst of emotional turmoil. Some say time will heal a broken heart but most of us discover that the wounds never fully heal and the pain never completely subsides.
First of all, we learn a lot about ourselves in the course of a failed love affair and are able to use that knowledge when nurturing another relationship. Secondly, personal pain fuels our capacity for empathy, allowing us to understand and comfort friends and family members when they have a similar experience and need our emotional support. Finally, heartache and its sequelae have inspired much of the literature, music and artwork throughout human history; had we not endured the pain ourselves, we could not fully appreciate these cultural forms of expression.
This intellectual reasoning may be helpful in the long run but does little to diminish heartache for those in the midst of emotional turmoil. Some say time will heal a broken heart but most of us discover that the wounds never fully heal and the pain never completely subsides.
