When life gets hard, a few kind words can feel like a hand on your shoulder. Quotes can’t take away your problems, but they can remind you that others have walked difficult roads too, and that you’re not alone.

Here are some comforting lines to hold onto.

This too shall pass

This old saying, found in many cultures, is a gentle reminder that hard times, like good times, don’t last forever.

Helen Keller

“Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.”

Helen Keller lost her sight and hearing as a small child and went on to become a writer and campaigner. Her words remind us that people find ways through, even when it seems impossible.

Maya Angelou

“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated.”

The American poet Maya Angelou knew hardship well. Her words encourage us to keep going, gently, one step at a time.

Julian of Norwich

“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”

These words from a fourteenth-century English mystic have comforted people for centuries.

Fred Rogers

Fred Rogers, the American children’s television host, remembered his mother telling him to “look for the helpers” when frightening things happened. There are always people who help.

Finding your own words

You might keep a favourite line on a card by your bed or as a note on your phone. Sometimes a few words are enough to get you through a hard hour.

If low feelings stay heavy for a long while, please reach out for support; you don’t have to carry it alone.

How little is enough

Choose one line from this page that speaks to you, and write it somewhere you’ll see it today.

For more, read 7 things to remember when life gets rough.

If you’d like to keep going with this, you’ll find a few gentle guides on the Guides page.