The Cure Ain’t Always Worth the Side Effects

The Cure Ain’t Always Worth the Side Effects

By Kateb Nuri-Alim Shunnar

There was a time when I thought quick fixes were the answer to everything. You got a headache? Pop a pill. Feeling restless? Drown it in distractions. Something broken? Patch it up and move on. But my grandmother, Celestine oh, she had a way of cutting through all that nonsense with the simplest words. She’d sit me down, look me square in the eye, and say, "Baby, the side effects will kill you quicker than the cure."

I didn't understand what she meant back then. I figured she was just talking about medicine, warning me about all those commercials where the cure sounded worse than the disease. You know the ones “May cause dizziness, nausea, insomnia, loss of appetite, and in rare cases, spontaneous combustion.” But as I grew older, I realized she was talking about life itself. The things we do to fix our problems often end up making them worse, and if we’re not careful, we’ll be undone by the very solutions we thought would save us.

My mother, Marva, on the other hand, was more direct. She believed in hard work, discipline, and faith. "Don't trade in your future just to make today easier," she’d tell me. But let me tell you, I was stubborn. I had to learn the hard way. There were times I took shortcuts, thinking they’d get me ahead faster. But every time, without fail, I paid for it. I learned that the easy road is lined with hidden toll booths, and the price is always steeper than you expected.

Like that time I, Kateb, chased after what looked like a better life, thinking the grass was greener on the other side. And sure, maybe it was. But let me tell you the water bill was outright ridiculous. The cost of keeping up with that life was more than I could afford, and before I knew it, I was drained, empty, and wondering how I got there in the first place.

Life is funny that way. It’s a lot like those pharmaceutical drugs that promise to fix one problem but come with a laundry list of side effects. You take something to cure your headache, and now you’ve got blurry vision and an upset stomach. You chase success without balance, and suddenly, you’re rich in possessions but bankrupt in peace. You seek love without discernment, and before you know it, you’re entangled in something that drains your spirit rather than nourishes it. Everything comes with a trade-off.

Celestine’s words echo in my mind every time I think about the choices I’ve made. "Baby, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. And even if it’s real, you better ask yourself what’s the price?" She knew that everything comes with a cost. The question is whether the trade is worth it.

And here’s the kicker sometimes, we don’t even realize we’re paying the price until we’re knee-deep in the debt of our own choices. We’re so focused on instant relief that we forget to ask if the medicine is actually healing us or just numbing the symptoms. We want love, but settle for attachment. We want peace, but settle for avoidance. We want meaning, but settle for distractions. We don’t ask the deeper questions because we’re too busy looking for the quickest escape from discomfort.

Philosophers have argued for centuries that suffering is a part of growth, that there’s wisdom in the struggle. And I get it now. The pain we avoid today often becomes the lesson we need tomorrow. But when we try to cheat that process, when we look for quick fixes instead of real healing, we set ourselves up for something worse down the line.

I know better now. I know that real healing takes time. That the best things in life don’t come easy. That a little struggle today can save a whole lot of heartache tomorrow. And most of all, I know that when God says “Be still,” He doesn’t mean “Find a quicker way.” He means trust. He means patience. He means real, lasting solutions, not temporary band-aids that’ll only make things worse in the end.

So if you’re out there, trying to fix something with a shortcut, thinking you’ve found an easy way out stop and think. Ask yourself if the side effects are worth it. Because the wrong remedy can do more damage than the problem itself. And sometimes, the best cure is just letting the Creator do His work in you, one step at a time.

Life ain't a microwave dinner you can't just nuke your problems and expect a gourmet meal. Some things have to marinate, simmer, and develop over time. And trust me, the best things in life? They’re worth the wait.

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The Cure Ain’t Always Worth the Side Effects