From my own religious/spiritual perspective, suffering is certainly unavoidable.  But it has a purpose.  Without suffering, we could never become individuals.  Much of who we are and who we can become is born out of our suffering and adversity in our lives.  Without that as a stimulus we never see our true potential.

So yeah, suffering is awful and it sucks and no one wants it, and yet without it I believe we would never see our best selves.

Cheers.