Flutters of Hope

By Shahna Duerksen, M.A., LMFT

June 2025

When hope is gone, when despair, depression and hopelessness darkens your day. When the light of day is hard to see or feel. May you begin to feel flutters of hope again.

At times in life when darkness invades and the flickering flame of hope is snuffed out by loss, disappointment and hurtful experiences you may think that you'll never see or feel the light of hope once again. The darkness of despair, depression, loss and hopelessness feels never ending. You question will this dark night continue? Will I ever see or feel the lightness of life? In those moments, days and seasons where you think that morning light will never come reach out and get support and allow others in. Describe your feelings and symptoms with a trusted friend, doctor, mentor or professional therapist that can help you reflect on and find what the causes of the despair and hopelessness are from.

For those that need to feel the warmth of hope ..... May you feel the flutters of hope once again. May you be surrounded by that one, two or three 'full of hope' people that can hope enough for you both until you are full of hope; HOPEFUL once again.

And for those of you that are hopeful....be gentle encouragers with those around you that are feeling the darkness of lost hope in their lives. Validate their feelings, sit 'with' them in their darkness not expecting them to join you in your light or expecting them to 'snap' out of it. Encourage them to stay connected and seek help.

The blog article originally published on May 22, 2019, has been updated in June 2025. Shahna Duerksen, M.A., LMFT #140986, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist located in Fresno, CA, providing both in-person therapy (Fresno, CA) and tele-health services throughout California. Shahna aims to help de-stigmatize mental illness and make it a normal topic of conversation for everyone. She enjoys photography, humor, and travel, often blending these interests into adventurous escapades. Her practice mainly centers on women's experiences. For more details and mental health resources, visit Instagram @shahnaduerksen, psychologytoday.com and to schedule appointments, go to headway.co/providers/shahna-duerksen