Denial and hope get confused, but they behave differently. Pretending requires energy to maintain and collapses when the facts intrude, while real hope can hold an accurate picture and still expect things to improve. The strength only becomes available once you stop editing what you see.

Name the hardest true thing about your situation, plainly, without softening it. Then ask what you still hope for and what would move toward it. Hope that has already faced the facts is the kind that lasts.