Thoughtful Thursday // What Gets You Through Hard Times?

"What has gotten you through your hardest times in life?"

No one likes hard times and if you're anything like me, you don't even like remembering them, but they still happen. Hopefully, we all have things that help us through those seasons when they come.

I would say there have been three things that have always helped me through the hardest times. Those things are journaling, music, and friends.

I've always been an internal processor. I'm better at writing than speaking. My journals are full of my questions and pain when I'm dealing with something hard. (However, I also have historically been a stuffer of emotions so that has led me to counseling when it all got to be too much).

When I can't find the words, I've found that music helps me feel and can also say what I'm feeling but didn't know how to say. There is a quote that I love that says, "Music is what feelings sound like." I just know that music helps me to express, process, and sometimes release my emotions.

Finally, friends. For most of my life, I've always had people in my corner when the rug got ripped out from under me. The one time I felt like I had no one, it made that event all the harder. I did eventually confide in two friends and after a few years, I found a new community with people who I could talk to, but trying to go through pain without people is NOT something I recommend or ever want to experience again.

The reason I find friends to be so important in hard times is partly because I'm an internal processor. I can get stuck inside my head, with thoughts that just won't be quiet, and I need people outside who can speak the truth to me, remind me of what God says, and listen when keeping it in becomes too much. There are times when journaling can't help anymore and I have to talk.

What about you? Do we have any coping mechanisms in common? What kinds of things get you through hard times?