How Strangers Renewed Hope on My Worst Day

Sometimes hope comes from the most unexpected places. 

In this moving episode, Terri shares the heartbreaking moment when a simple physical therapy exercise brought her to tears and made her feel like giving up entirely. At 43, unable to walk and talk simultaneously, she felt embarrassed, stupid, and utterly defeated.

But then something beautiful happened. The cardiac rehab patients she'd been quietly sharing space with for months—men who had never spoken to her before—became her unlikely champions.

This episode explores the science and soul of hope. Through personal vulnerability and practical wisdom, you'll discover how to identify your own "hope markers"—those pivotal moments in your story when you refused to go down—and how to use them to fuel resilience during life's daily grind.

If you're feeling pressed on all sides, undervalued, or worn down by expectations and self-doubt, this episode offers both comfort and strategy for rekindling hope when you need it most.

Includes resource link for the Science of Hope research.

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Transcript

 I will never forget the day the physical therapist asked me to step on the treadmill. As she secured the gate belt around my waist, she told me I was going to say the alphabet backward while walking on that treadmill. Up to this point in my therapy, I hadn't yet walked on the treadmill. 

I was optimistic. So when the treadmill began at the slow speed of 0.5, by the time I got to the letter S, tears were falling down my face. I had missed some letters. And that made me feel embarrassed and stupid. I turned to the therapist and cried, ”I, I can't, I can't do this”. That's when the cardiac rehab guys on the stationary bikes spoke up. 

Those older gentlemen were there every week with me, but had never spoken to me until the worst moment of my life. Here's what they said. Hey, don't make her cry. You are pushing her too hard. The therapist led me away from the treadmill, and as I passed those men, I smiled, and thanked them. 

That's when I heard, “You'll get there. Don't you give up” 

In my third month of three times a week therapy that day on the treadmill just about crushed my hope, embarrassed and feeling stupid because at 43 I could not walk and talk simultaneously.

That day, those cardiac rehab men fed my hope. 

The way I see it, hope lives because you believe you are not stuck. You believe there is one more step, one more handhold, one more act you can take that will lead you to the next step.  

Hope helps you survive. 

Each survivor and overcomer story with its painful details causes us to lean in so not to miss the pivotal moment.  We await the crucial hope moment propelling them forward.

Hope instills hope. 

Of course, your daily grind isn't much of a hope generator. You feel undervalued at work, home, or both. Everyone wants more from you while withholding recognition and appreciation. People problems, expectations, and self-doubt chip away at your resilience, your mental endurance motivation, and your belief in the positive. 

All of these are backbones of hope. If you want to preserve and bolster your hope, rummage through your life story. You, you've got that moment when you refuse to go down, a time you reach for one more reason to keep going. Maybe it's been long ago, but it counts. 

You use that to propel you toward hope.  

Since that day on the treadmill, when I have a bad day, I recall a few stone-faced guys who fanned into a flame the dying embers of my hope. It's a memory, a hope marker. Reminding me I kept at it. I didn't give up. I pushed through the hard. Yes, bad days, and even worse days happened after that day on the treadmill, but it didn't take me out.

You can stoke the flames of hope within you with a memory from your own story. When you feel pressed on all sides, remember your presence and purpose in this life matters. Just ask God to remind you of your worth to Him and others. If you want to discover more about the Science of Hope, there's a link in the episode description of this podcast.

Thank you for listening.  Hey, subscribe to the podcast on YouTube or wherever you listen. And don't miss going to Substack for the Anchored Not Anxious insights.  Until next time.