A weakness or a strength?

Someone very dear to me recently said, "I feel so weak asking for help!"

The context of the situation is that this wonderful and spirited person is not only recenty bereaved, but is also in the midst of a marriage breakdown.

For years and throughtout life's many ups and downs they have been able to 'soldier on' without needing help, albeit the wine and cigarettes. However this time, the subsances aren't enough and the battery power is dwindling.

So I held their statement in mind for a few moments, because I knew there was little point in me saying, 'No...you should not feel weak'.

I reflected on a time when I have had similar thoughts about my coping mechanisms and felt desperate for needing help to see a way through the fog, in a way that those close to me couldn't assist with.

In a culture of 'stiff upper lip' it is easy to see why this happens.

I had my response: what would you say to me if I said that?

To which they looked at me and said, "I'd say you were trying to help yourself, that is'nt weak."

Identifying that we could be struggling to cope and taking the giant step to try and access help, whatever it may be for, is certainy not a weakness; it only demonstrates a sense of self worth and a core of true strength.