Have you ever faced hard times and adversity? Have you ever found yourself giving up and just giving in to the feeling of defeat? When things heat up it may seem as if it’s just easier to throw up the white flag of surrender and retreat back to what is familiar; However, giving up in many situations can be the worst thing you can do for yourself.
By giving up on things that are difficult, we are essentially giving up on ourselves. Continually giving up on yourself leads to a lack of faith in yourself. A lack of faith in yourself will eventually lead to lower self-esteem.
The continual cycle of giving up on yourself and the resulting lowering of self-esteem is a downward spiral that many never find their way out of. My time working at Yale Hospital New Haven taught me many things.
Trust That There Is Possibility Beyond Your Pain And Hope Beyond Your Hurt.
The most valuable lesson I learned was the importance of staying afloat when the only thing you feel like doing is giving up. Working at Yale Hospital in New Haven , Connecticut is a great opportunity; However,at the time I was offered an assignment to work there, I was going through a very tough time personally.
No doubt, one of the most difficult and darkest times in my life. To be honest at the time, I lacked the energy to push myself out of bed most mornings , let alone work for one of the most prestigious institutions in the world.
It would simply have been easier for me to stay stuck where I was and just give up on ever making things better in my life. It would have been easier to say to myself that I didn’t deserve anything better because I lacked the energy to fight for it.
The Easy Road Won’t Be Paved With Opportunity.
Eventually, I reluctantly said yes to Yale. There was a moment of initial excitement after the job acceptance. Yale Hospital is the training hospital for Yale School of Medicine as well as Yale School of Nursing. It is one of only four Level I trauma centers in the state.
It’s international medicine program serves patient from all over the world. Yale is not just a healthcare experience, it is literally a cultural experience of care. It is an enormous opportunity.
I knew that if I could survive my experience, I could acquire skills that would take me beyond the hallowed hallways of Yale Hospital. That initial flicker of excitement soon turned to doubt. Doubt gave way to fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of the uncertainty of whether my education and training would be enough. The fear of my current personal struggles weighing me down. What if I wasn’t ready? Even worse….what if I failed?
In fact, the fear of failure throwing me further down the hole I was still trying to climb my way out of was my biggest fear. The uncertainty of the situation I was currently fighting felt more comfortable than the uncertainty of something unfamiliar.
The uncertainty of what lie ahead of me was a fear I wasn’t sure I had the energy to fight. I started to pray. I didn’t know what to pray for. I only knew that when times get hard, praying is what you are supposed to do.
After spending time in prayer and meditation, God’s tender spirit made me realize that I had survived a pathological relationship back then and that I would survive my recovery now. I had to make a choice, one I knew wouldn’t be easy but I also knew there was no other choice I could live with. To abandon myself, and give up on myself just wasn’t something I could risk doing. There was too much at stake. My career, self-esteem and my life were all on the line.
Losing This One Thing Can Change The Course Of Your Life Forever.
I had worked for this opportunity my entire life. I had to believe in that even if it was the last thing I felt like doing. I would essentially be giving up on myself, my future, my children, my freedom and my self-esteem.
I made the choice that day NOT to give up on me. My self-esteem was counting on me not to let myself down. If you are facing the decision to give up on you for someone else or for something else, consider the cost.
Faith in yourself is a direct path to your self-esteem. Self esteem affects every part of our lives. It will effect what type of job we get, how successful we will be and the quality and longevity of our lives.
If you give up on yourself you’ll be giving up a lot more than you may realize today. Are you REALLY willing to chance not ever getting those things back?
The only way to survive hard times and difficult challenges is to face them and beat them. When we experience hard times we build confidence in our skills, and our self- esteem grows when we overcome them. The benefits of healthy self-esteem is priceless. Here’s hoping you know the value of yours.