School of Life Monday Asking for Help When We're in Trouble

It can be easy to feel that no one in the world really cares about us. The truth is more complicated: people are generally able to care a lot, but they need to hear a clear sign of distress first - something we're often too inhibited or modest to give. We should learn to (as it were) scream when we're really in trouble. People will generally come running.

“It can, at points, seem horrifically clear that simply no one really cares. They barely notice our presence, they hardly stick around to listen to what we have to say, they catch none of our hints – and they are overwhelmingly preoccupied with their own projects and day-to-day concerns.
On the basis of such evidence, it is easy for us to fall into a large, damning and dangerously heart-breaking conclusion about our situation: that we are profoundly alone – far beyond any possibility of connection or empathy…”