9 Things That Can Help When You're Feeling Hopeless (2023)

FAQs

How do you keep hope in a hopeless situation? ›

Feeling helpless is something that many people experience from time to time. It's a feeling that can strike following a period of stress or as a response to trauma. In other cases, it can be a symptom of a mental illness such as depression.

Thinking about all that you are grateful for puts things in a new and happier perspective, which naturally makes you more hopeful. You can practice gratitude by writing down daily three to five things you are grateful for in a journal. Alternatively, you can think grateful thoughts before you start or end your day.

Hopelessness is frequently associated with a desire to isolate, and with negative feelings such as helplessness and powerlessness. Feelings of hopelessness may be caused by a variety of events such as financial issues, relationship problems, health concerns, or other such negative circumstances.

Seligman's theory of learned helplessness is composed of three components: contingency, cognition, and behavior. Contingency is the outcome of a person's actions; that is the result experienced due to a person's behavior.

What gives you hope everyday? ›

Some people see hope in how people interact with others, such as random acts of kindness. Others find hope in the overall movement by mankind toward a more inclusive future that offers a better life for all. One thing is certain. No matter who you are, hope is important because it gives your life meaning.

Engaging in positive uplifting activities like prayer or meditation can bring peace of mind and increase hope, according to The Conversationalist.

In the brain, people experience optimism about the future in two key areas: the amygdala, our emotion processing center, and part of a region called the anterior cingulate cortex that is involved in thinking about the self, reflecting on the past, and anticipating the future, particularly with an emotional lens.

A Prayer for Hope Today

God, you know those things in my heart that I barely dare to hope for, today I give them to you, I trust them to you, and ask that you because I know that you can do more than I could ever guess, imagine or request in wildest dreams (Eph 3:20). God, you are my hope and I trust you. Amen.

People hope to get out of difficult circumstances. That is often when people do find themselves hoping fervently! But hope also can provide the key to making everyday life better.

The Best Way

God's Word is loaded with promises that teach us about having faith in God during hard times. He tells us to not worry, to pray, and He will give us peace like you can't imagine. He tells us that He is there with us, in the trenches. And even after the struggle, He will strengthen and calm us.

Isaiah 41:10

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

How do you overcome despair? ›

Hope is the antidote to helplessness.

Helplessness is the sense that there isn't anything we can do to change a bad situation and we stop trying. Often helplessness arises in times when we really don't have control, but this feeling can turn into an enduring perspective of ourselves and our environment.

Self-control behavior utilizes a distal goal orientation in decision making in all scenarios, but it is of particular interest in health behavior. The hedonic pull of impulse can result in adverse outcomes in overall health.

That is, the hopelessness theory predicts that the interaction between negative cognitive styles and negative life events engenders a sense of hopelessness. This hopelessness, in turn, was hypothesized to be sufficient by itself to bring about depression.

Hopelessness is the feeling that nothing can be done by anyone to make the situation better. People may accept that a threat is real, but that threat may loom so large that they feel the situation is hopeless. Helplessness is the feeling that they themselves have no power to improve their situation.

The Psalmist says, “For He will deliver the needy who cry out,the afflicted who have no one to help” (Psalm 72:12). Yes! As your cry out to the Lord, He will deliver you from all your problems. Just like Jesus healed a man, because there was nobody to help him.

Hopelessness is a feeling of despair or lack of hope that life can feel better than it does. These feelings may make you pull back from your life and avoid doing things you usually enjoy or being with people you love. If hopelessness becomes severe, it can lead to suicidal thoughts.

Is hopelessness a form of depression? ›

Hopelessness is mostly associated with depression. It's one of the formal symptoms of clinical depression. There are many possible causes of depression, and if you live with the condition, hopelessness can be a result.

Anxiety is a negative experience that can be persistent and difficult to control and which can be extremely disruptive to goals and aspirations. Thus, many anxious people may develop hopeless thoughts about their anxiety and the effects it has on their lives.

In the natural it may not look like anything good can come from your situation, but God can use anything for His glory. Don't loose hope, believe despite what it looks like, thank God as if its already done, expect things to turn in your favor, then watch God show out in your life.

Overview. Persistent depressive disorder is a continuous, long-term form of depression. You may feel sad and empty, lose interest in daily activities and have trouble getting things done. You may also have low self-esteem, feel like a failure and feel hopeless.

Women are nearly twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with depression. Depression can occur at any age. Some mood changes and depressed feelings occur with normal hormonal changes. But hormonal changes alone don't cause depression.