Chris is Fighting Demons But He’ll Be Okay

I was chatting with one of my friends, and we started talking about the time we worked together briefly.

It was only about three months in a particular job, but at the time, I wasn’t in a good place.

I kept calling in sick, especially on weekends. I just couldn’t bring myself to show up.

He told me that one day, when I didn’t come in, he asked our colleague B where I was.

B responded simply and directly:

“Chris is fighting demons. But he’ll be okay. He just needs time.”

I only found out about this many years later.

When I heard it, I paused. I reflected. He was right.

I was fighting demons.

And the only reason B could see it so clearly was because he had been through something similar.

He knew what it looked like from the inside.

That comment stayed with me.

Sometimes, it takes someone who’s walked through their own fire to recognise the flames in someone else and to trust that they’ll make it through.