Food for thought "someone always has it worse than you"

This happened to me a week or so ago. (I've heard it quite often)
I've actually told myself this before, but i'm learning that it's not healthy to do that, because then you actually invalidate yourself.. and that's not ok. You are valid.

Someone had been talking about a certain physical ailment and it was something that I personally deal with, so i told them a little bit about my health as well.
And then came the line "I guess it could help to remember that (dun dun dun) someone always has it worse."

SOMEONE ALWAYS HAS IT WORSE

I have a love/hate relationship with this statement.

I understand that the person saying it is trying to be helpful, they're trying to make the person in distress feel better or to look differently upon the situation, feel more empathy.. but I also understand that a dismissive statement.

The person on the receiving end of this feels belittled, feels like what they're going through isn't important, like their distress doesn't matter. It doesn't give that person space to feel like what they're going through is valid.
It belittles their problems and their frustrations, also making them realize that this person that they just opened up to isn't going to be helpful to them in this area of their life. Just another way for them to close themselves off from others.
The thought process being "I opened myself to this person who I thought would understand and they made me feel unimportant, and it hurts".

I know because, as I said before, this happened/happens to me. I'm one of them.

Yes, it is true, that there is generally always another person somewhere who is going through something harder or hurting more.

But for the person who is trying to reach out to have somebody say "I'm sorry you're going through this" can feel like they weren't listened to, their feelings don't matter, and that what's happening to them isn't that important.

Food for thought. Bet careful when you say things like this.
And if you're on the other end, the person listening to someone in distress, instead of saying something like this quote, or if you feel awkward or don't know what to say, that's ok. You don't have to respond. OR If you feel like you must say something, a simple "I'm sorry you're going through this" or just "I'm sorry" is HUGE.
Sometimes people just want another person to listen to them. Just to say "You know what, i'm struggling right now. Please just be in this moment with me and help lift me up. Don't put me down, i'm already low".