A S&W "K" frame will last about forever and 2 days with +P ammo.

Many of us practice with standard .38 Special or +P ammo, and either load up with Magnums for carry, or just stick with the +P.
There's a lot to be said for the old .38+P lead, semi-wadcutter, hollow point load as a defense round.
That was the round that ended the police complaints about failures to stop with the old standard .38.

Another great choice are the new "short barrel" loads. These are "light Magnum" loads made specifically for short barrel defense guns and have bullets in the 135 grain range. These fall somewhere in between the +P and full Magnum loads.
Federal makes some good ones.