While listening to President Barack Obama’s inaugural address to the nation, I was struck by his use of the word “hope.” Upon hearing his passionate declaration, “We have chosen hope over fear,” I recalled a similar assertion about hope in a book by Jerome Groopman, M.D., The Anatomy of Hope: How People Prevail In The Face Of Illness
(2004). Concerning ill-health, Groopman pointed out that fear can overwhelm hope (p. 54). In other words, where there is fear there is little room for hope.
According to Groopman, when we allow fear to permeate our experiences and determine our actions, it leads us to feel we are not in control in our lives. As a result, we lose hope—hope for a good day, a better tomorrow, or perhaps a treatment for illness or cure for disease. To Groopman, hope remains absent in these instances because hope arrives only when we recognize that there are real options and that we have genuine choices (p.26). In truth, we can act to make a difference, no matter how big or small.
To gain a clearer understanding of the affects of fear on our ability to see options and maintain a hopeful outlook, it is helpful to ask questions such as, what is hope? What purpose does hope serve in our lives? Also important to ask is, if we don’t consistently experience hope—or worse, feel completely hopeless—how do we become more hopeful?
To answer these and other similar questions, let’s first consider the meaning of hope. Wikipedia (2009) describes hope as a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one’s life. Hope is the feeling that we can have what we want or that events will turn out for the best. It’s opposite, false hope, is hope based entirely around a fantasy or an extremely unlikely outcome. We often call false hope wishful thinking. We can be optimistic and wish for things we have no ability to control, such as the weather, but in terms of hope, true hope requires that we be able to take action by setting goals and choosing actions or behaviors to meet them.
According to Cheavens in her article, You’ve got to have hope: studies show “hope therapy” fights depression (2008, ¶5), knowing how to get what we want from life coupled with the desire to make it happen provides greater opportunity for a hopeful outlook. Positive belief and expectation are critical elements of a hopeful state. Cheavens goes on further to compare hope and optimism, seeing hope as a more finite state of having goals along with the desire and plan to achieve them. Optimism is a more general feeling that good things will happen—a more passive, wait and see approach in comparison to the more active expectation of gain or improvement through hope.
Armed now with a more insightful understanding of hope, we now return to the question, what purpose does hope serve in our lives? Research and experience concludes that maintaining a hopeful attitude and positive outlook can lead to enhanced physical and emotional well-being. Cheavins discovered through her work that hope battles depression and improves overall satisfaction with life. Groopman, through his work as a physician, found that hopefulness often resulted in improvements in the physical condition of his patients as well as their emotional and spiritual well-being. “Hope, then, is the ballast that keeps us steady, that recognizes where along the path are the dangers and pitfalls that can throw us off; hope tempers fear so we can recognize dangers and then bypass or endure them” (p. 199).
As to where we find hope, I believe the opportunity for hope lies in our everyday experiences—our individual experiences and those shared with others. Research suggests that hope is more available to us when we take positive action in relation to our experiences. It is in facing our fears and having a goal-directed approach for managing fear that we are able to see the potential for a brighter tomorrow. Positive thinking and an attitude of gratitude for what our experiences can teach us has the potential to create a more light-hearted, even humorous approach to our experiences.
From a study conducted at Texas A&M University (2005) researcher David Rosen relates the outcome of greater self-worth when dealing with specific problems or stressful events to humor. It appears that humor positively influences a person’s state of hopefulness. The study found that humor has the ability to inhibit negative thoughts and can even help to create positive ones. In turn, positive thoughts foster hope in people. An outcome of positive thought is the ability to discard automatic behavioral responses. In doing this, we are better able to pursue creative paths of thought and action.
When we take the opportunity to find hope by looking at life through the lens of our innate creative spirit, we possess a heightened ability to develop a “plan of attack” for a specific problem. Through this action develops a perceived ability to overcome obstacles in dealing with that problem – two aspects that psychologists believe comprise hope.
In his book, Groopman (p.190) states that, “No one is beyond the capacity to hope.” Gratefully, this brings some comfort that even in the darkest of times hope is within our grasp if we choose to reach for it and actively find ways to cultivate it. Research and experience clearly points to the positive benefits of hope including the ability to continue finding the good in life despite unfortunate events. Where there seems little left to hold on to, hope, through conscious action, brings meaning, peace of mind and ultimately greater wisdom in relation to ourselves and to our life experiences.
Kibou Healing Arts exists to support individuals experiencing transition in health, work or relationship, with self or others. Contact us through our website if we may be of service to you on your journey of health and well-being.
He who has health has hope and he who has hope has everything. ~Proverb
References
Cheavins, J. (2008). You’ve got to have hope: Studies show “hope therapy” fights depression. Retrieved January 31, 2009, from http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/apahope.htm
Groopman, J. (2004). The anatomy of hope: How people prevail in the face of illness. New York: Random House
Handler, R. (2009). What is hope? Retrieved January 31, 2009 from http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/31/f-vp-handler.html
Hope. (2009, January 18). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 19, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hope&oldid=264943463
Texas A&M University (2005, April 13). Humor Can Increase Hope, Research Shows. ScienceDaily. Retrieved January 18, 2009, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/04/050413091232.htm
ot Hope?
Linda Hall, MA, BSN
While listening to President Barack Obama’s inaugural address to the nation, I was struck by his use of the word “hope.” Upon hearing his passionate declaration, “We have chosen hope over fear,” I recalled a similar assertion about hope in a book by Jerome Groopman, M.D., The Anatomy of Hope: How People Prevail In The Face Of Illness (2004). Concerning ill-health, Groopman pointed out that fear can overwhelm hope (p. 54). In other words, where there is fear there is little room for hope.
According to Groopman, when we allow fear to permeate our experiences and determine our actions, it leads us to feel we are not in control in our lives. As a result, we lose hope—hope for a good day, a better tomorrow, or perhaps a treatment for illness or cure for disease. To Groopman, hope remains absent in these instances because hope arrives only when we recognize that there are real options and that we have genuine choices (p.26). In truth, we can act to make a difference, no matter how big or small.
To gain a clearer understanding of the affects of fear on our ability to see options and maintain a hopeful outlook, it is helpful to ask questions such as, what is hope? What purpose does hope serve in our lives? Also important to ask is, if we don’t consistently experience hope—or worse, feel completely hopeless—how do we become more hopeful?
To answer these and other similar questions, let’s first consider the meaning of hope. Wikipedia (2009) describes hope as a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one’s life. Hope is the feeling that we can have what we want or that events will turn out for the best. It’s opposite, false hope, is hope based entirely around a fantasy or an extremely unlikely outcome. We often call false hope wishful thinking. We can be optimistic and wish for things we have no ability to control, such as the weather, but in terms of hope, true hope requires that we be able to take action by setting goals and choosing actions or behaviors to meet them.
According to Cheavens in her article, You’ve got to have hope: studies show “hope therapy” fights depression (2008, ¶5), knowing how to get what we want from life coupled with the desire to make it happen provides greater opportunity for a hopeful outlook. Positive belief and expectation are critical elements of a hopeful state. Cheavens goes on further to compare hope and optimism, seeing hope as a more finite state of having goals along with the desire and plan to achieve them. Optimism is a more general feeling that good things will happen—a more passive, wait and see approach in comparison to the more active expectation of gain or improvement through hope.
Armed now with a more insightful understanding of hope, we now return to the question, what purpose does hope serve in our lives? Research and experience concludes that maintaining a hopeful attitude and positive outlook can lead to enhanced physical and emotional well-being. Cheavins discovered through her work that hope battles depression and improves overall satisfaction with life. Groopman, through his work as a physician, found that hopefulness often resulted in improvements in the physical condition of his patients as well as their emotional and spiritual well-being. “Hope, then, is the ballast that keeps us steady, that recognizes where along the path are the dangers and pitfalls that can throw us off; hope tempers fear so we can recognize dangers and then bypass or endure them” (p. 199).
As to where we find hope, I believe the opportunity for hope lies in our everyday experiences—our individual experiences and those shared with others. Research suggests that hope is more available to us when we take positive action in relation to our experiences. It is in facing our fears and having a goal-directed approach for managing fear that we are able to see the potential for a brighter tomorrow. Positive thinking and an attitude of gratitude for what our experiences can teach us has the potential to create a more light-hearted, even humorous approach to our experiences.
From a study conducted at Texas A&M University (2005) researcher David Rosen relates the outcome of greater self-worth when dealing with specific problems or stressful events to humor. It appears that humor positively influences a person’s state of hopefulness. The study found that humor has the ability to inhibit negative thoughts and can even help to create positive ones. In turn, positive thoughts foster hope in people. An outcome of positive thought is the ability to discard automatic behavioral responses. In doing this, we are better able to pursue creative paths of thought and action.
When we take the opportunity to find hope by looking at life through the lens of our innate creative spirit, we possess a heightened ability to develop a “plan of attack” for a specific problem. Through this action develops a perceived ability to overcome obstacles in dealing with that problem – two aspects that psychologists believe comprise hope.
In his book, Groopman (p.190) states that, “No one is beyond the capacity to hope.” Gratefully, this brings some comfort that even in the darkest of times hope is within our grasp if we choose to reach for it and actively find ways to cultivate it. Research and experience clearly points to the positive benefits of hope including the ability to continue finding the good in life despite unfortunate events. Where there seems little left to hold on to, hope, through conscious action, brings meaning, peace of mind and ultimately greater wisdom in relation to ourselves and to our life experiences.
Kibou Healing Arts exists to support individuals experiencing transition in health, work or relationship, with self or others. Contact us through our website if we may be of service to you on your journey of health and well-being.
“He who has health has hope
and he who has hope has everything”
~ Proverb ~
References
Cheavins, J. (2008). You’ve got to have hope: Studies show “hope therapy” fights depression. Retrieved January 31, 2009, from http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/apahope.htm
Groopman, J. (2004). The anatomy of hope: How people prevail in the face of illness. New York: Random House
Handler, R. (2009). What is hope? Retrieved January 31, 2009 from http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/31/f-vp-handler.html
Hope. (2009, January 18). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 19, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hope&oldid=264943463
Texas A&M University (2005, April 13). Humor Can Increase Hope, Research Shows. ScienceDaily. Retrieved January 18, 2009, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/04/050413091232.htm
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