The purpose of hurt is to limit the extent of the damage done to you. The role of hurt is to
tell you that you have been damaged - physically or emotionally. Hurt teaches you to establish limits with others. It shows you and others as to how much can you tolerate. These limits are especially important with people you really care about. In fact, people you love the most have the power to hurt you the most. If you do not express yourself when others hurt you, then they have no way to know that you did not like what they did to you and with you. They would believe whatever they did was acceptable to you. So they keep repeating the same behavior and continue the same approach. In due course hurt compounds and becomes complex. If you don't maintain boundaries, you will find others hurting you all the time, not because they are bad, but because they never knew that they were hurting. Remember, expressing hurt as and when it happens will never take a person away from the relationship. But if you keep continuously sweeping everything under the carpet for too long, then one day you will find dust accumulation of unmanageable proportion. Expressing hurt when it happens is vital for keeping a relationship safe and honest. If you do not say 'No' to hurt WITHIN a relationship, then one day you will have to say 'No' TO the relationship. People treat you in life the way you teach them to treat you. Having expressed your hurt, forgive people who have hurt you. Forgiving is letting go of your hurt. Without forgiving you cannot grow. You cannot correct or alter what has already been done to you.
