My life was difficult, participating in normal life was overwhelming. It often took all I had to simply make it through the day and then I’d have absolutely nothing left.

So for years I’d turn on Law & Order: SVU and watch an episode or two or three. The suffering I’d see – fictionalized yet all too real – would give me a burst of energy to seek some way to alleviate other’s suffering even in the smallest way.

It wasn’t about saying to myself, “Look, others are suffering worse than you. Your suffering is not important.” My suffering was/is important. But it was saying, “I have the power to do something about this. It may not be much, but let me do that.”

Footnote

Interestingly, while I found other shows like Criminal Minds quite interesting they did not induce (regularly/reliably) the same feelings of empathy that Law & Order: SVU brought out for me.