The psychological issue of restoring damaged trust. Photo credit: stock.adobe.com
Rebuilding trust can be challenging once it has been damaged
because it requires sustained effort, vulnerability, and a genuine commitment
from those who abuse their authority or office to oppress and dominate defenseless
people.
The process is inherently nonlinear and can be prolonged,
especially after major betrayals, leaving lasting psychological scars and
deep-seated doubt. While possible with time and consistent actions, trust is
often never fully restored to its original state.
There comes a time when the decision to forgive becomes
pointless since the people who are consistently abusing their power or hurting
you lack self-control. They continue to commit crimes, act cruelly, and break
the law with impunity.
I have experienced difficult times in my life, not because I
have broken the law, but rather because, as an African writer in Europe, some
people view my writing as a threat even though I do not support
violence or intend to incite political upheaval.
Hundreds of journalists and writers in Europe and the US
write false and misleading articles about Africa, and they don't mind at all. I
wouldn't be aware that European journalists are paid to disseminate false
information about diseases if I weren't in Europe.
At the moment, I have lost faith in the government and many
institutions in Belgium during the past 25 years, and I don't believe that any
psychiatric therapy or rehabilitation can help me regain that broken trust. I
don’t have trust in anyone except my family.
In my current perspective, I don't need to trust people or institutions till the day I die if I want to live a healthy and happy life. That is far better than short-lived trust from forces that don’t value the truth or life but only money.