(Distinctions are subtleties of language that, when gotten, cause a shift in a belief, behavior, value or attitude.)

 

Relief, escaped, relieved – all of these are about getting away from something which doesn’t feel good or is even painful.

An example is a zit on the nose of a teenager. Once pricked, the pain is relieved. It’s not healed, merely relieved.

We also see this in many divorces. The upset which was the basis of the split may be relieved by divorce, but healing hasn’t happened.

Or when a business has been left behind by a shift in its market and a desperate measure is implemented there may be a short relief, but if the fundamental business model is not adjusted to the new reality (healed), the relief will be temporary.

It’s easy to see why this happens over and over – pain is so attention-getting that once it’s relieved we have a tendency to stop. Ah, relief! Leaving the underlying issue unresolved.

Real progress occurs when we look clearly at what happened, decide that we don’t want to repeat the pain, determine some changes to be made, implement the changes, then stay the course until healing has occurred.

Only when healed are we free.

 

Coaching Point: What are you ready to heal now?

 

Copyright 2017 Steve Straus. All rights reserved.