The Courage to Care

When I work with angry, depressed, or anxious people, something we have to focus on is building up an internal sense of courage. Courage isn’t the absence of fear, but instead is being willing to risk being vulnerable because you see that something is worth it. As said by German physicist Arthur Gordon Webster, "It takes courage to care for others, because people who care run the risk of being hurt. It's not easy to let your guard down, open your heart, react with sympathy or compassion or indignation or enthusiasm when usually it's much easier-and sometimes much safer-not to get involved. People who take the risk make a tremendous discovery: The more things you care about, and the more intensely you care, the more alive you are." We work hard in therapy to build up a sense of courage to actively love the world around you, because that is what it means to be alive. If you spend so much time behind guarded walls, you end up living your life in an emotional prison. Therapy helps you break out of that prison.

"It takes courage to care for others, because people who care run the risk of being hurt. It's not easy to let your guard down, open your heart, react with sympathy or compassion or indignation or enthusiasm when usually it's much easier-and sometimes much safer-not to get involved. People who take the risk make a tremendous discovery: The more things you care about, and the more intensely you care, the more alive you are."

~ Arthur Gordon Webster