Waiting.
Playing the waiting game.
Limbo.
Not knowing what comes next.
But knowing that whatever it is, it’s going to be hard.
People handle waiting in very different ways. For some the not knowing means focusing on the worst case scenario. It means thinking over, and over and over: “________ just can’t happen.” “I can’t lose my job.” “This cannot be true.” “He cannot die.”
For others, not knowing allows for the greatest amount of optimism. The optimist can believe wholeheartedly it is going to get better. That when the news comes it is going to provide an opportunity. That anything is possible. “Maybe, I’ll be one of the lucky ones.” “Maybe I am in the small fraction who will get better!” “With news will come the ability to make him more comfortable.”
I see my loved ones falling on different sides of the line.
In some cases they are at complete opposite extremes. Perhaps they balance each other out. The contrast helping the other accept the reality of the yet unknown truth.
I’m not sure where I fall. I tend to be a realist. However, I also believe in the power of positive thinking. I like to prepare myself for the worst, while hoping for the best.
How do you handle waiting for significant news? Especially if you don’t know when it’s coming?
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About Trish
Like you, I’m neither a true pessimist nor a true optimist. I tend to alternate between both states of mind: one day, I’m full of hope, the next, full of dread. I hope that whatever the news are for you, that you will all be strong enough to handle them.
Thanks Claudie. 🙂
I try to focus on the facts and do the best I can with the information I have at the time. I do not like surprises, so I try to keep my head as realistic as possible. Unfortunately, pessimism is often a side effect.
I don’t handle waiting for test results/surgical results/ etc. etc. etc.well. ‘They’ always say, “Two weeks…”
From the time I had a suspicious mammogram June 16 ..through biopsy, lumpectomy, lymph node biopsy, genetic testing…. it’s now Nov. 11 and I got notified yesterday that my radiation treatments will start Nov.17….25 sessions.
I hate very much not being in control of my life!!!