... are difficult and I was talking about it to a friend today (well, I was ranting and he was listening!) ... We all aspire to understand our friends, our families, our loved ones, but can we? The amazing thing about being a Psychiatrist is that you gain access into people's lives and minds; they will tell you things which no one else knows; good and bad things (although to be honest, it is mainly the latter) painful events which happened in the past, unrequited love, their fears, their dreams ... sometimes, you talk to those closet to the patients, and they would not have a clue ... the patient could be ill for ages, and they would not have noticed or knew ...
That is not because they do not care, but how much we understand someone depends on how much the other person is willing to reveal ... and also, depends on our past experience, knowledge and emotions, as together, they will affect our ability to interpret the other person's actions, ideas, and ultimately our understanding of them ...
Alas, "If each man or woman could understand that every other human life is as full of sorrows, or joys, or base temptations, of heartaches and of remorse as his own . . . how much kinder, how much gentler he would be (~ William Allen White)” will be a good starting point.
