At first sight, pain and suffering are quite similar concepts. However, there is a big gap between these concepts. Some may argue that pain is only a matter of the body whereas suffering is more emotional or psychological. We’ll not enter into this debate. We may address this question on both physical and psychological terms. Indeed, pain and suffering may both have an impact on distinct areas of human life.
We may only see one difference: it is our attitude or our reaction.
Pain is necessary to all improvements, it may be symptom of fear or some level of stress sometimes, but it’s definitely something that all of us have experienced at each step of our evolution. Pain is a lesson, and it is so when we acknowledge it.
On the other hand, suffering comes from our reluctance toward change and growth. When we become stuck or passive toward pain and when we are not wise enough to accept it as an essential part of our life, we then transform pain into suffering. Suffering is pain in absence of a growth mindset. We may feel overwhelmed from time to time by what’s happening around us and we may need to take a step back sometimes, which is totally okay. Nonetheless, this shouldn’t be something that we do on a regular basis because this creates the habit of running away from danger. Facing pain and going forward is one of the prerequisites of all achievements as long as we dare to challenge ourselves, i.e, our beliefs, our “own reality”.
Now, it is important to feel comfortable with pain or fear on a daily basis, just a little bit in order to expand our consciousness and confidence. Our brain needs tangible proofs of our courage so it can undertake serious challenges that aren’t necessarily related to the field where we “express” our boldness. Courage tends to bring more courage. Unfortunately, this also applies for the absence of audacity.
