Suffering has a domino effect

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.
You know how people say the rich get richer and the poor get poorer? Sometimes I feel like suffering works the same way.
When someone is already going through a lot, it puts them at a disadvantage. You lose time, energy and opportunities just trying to deal with what’s already happening, and sometimes that itself leads to more problems.
Meanwhile, people who have had an easier life have more space to actually enjoy their opportunities and build on them.
Obviously life isn’t that black and white, but sometimes it feels like suffering has a snowball effect.