I recently went through one of the hardest breakups of my entire life. I was convinced that he was the one, but I guess he was not. I can't even begin to tell you the kind of hurt I've been feeling because it is unlike anything I have ever experienced. I have been on a roller coaster of emotions in the amount of time I have been single but I finally feel like I am in a spot where I can talk about it all without losing it (at least we'll see, I'll report back at the end of this article).

This is a list of six "do's and don't's" of breakups that I wish I had thought about.

DO NOT become the damsel in distress. I know that all you want to do is be sad sometimes, that's exactly what I did for a little while, but do not go begging for him to stay. Do not sit outside his house crying on the ground hoping he will feel bad and remember how much he loved you because I promise that if he has his mind made up, this only makes you look worse.

DO get up out of your bed and remember how strong you are. Remember everything that you have accomplished without him and remember that your heart will go on, even if it takes some time. You can try drinking, you can try sleeping all day but the only thing that will ever really help you through this tough time is letting go and giving yourself the time you need to heal. You are better than the begging and the crying and all the awful things you are feeling right now, I promise. You are amazing, don't let this keep you down.

DO NOT go and stalk their social media profiles for days on end. Chances are, this will only prolong your heartache, it WILL NOT make you feel better. Do you really want to take the chance that I took and see that he is hanging out with the girl he always told you not to worry about when you were together? I promise, this will hurt more than it will ever help you. I understand wanting to know what they are up to, heck, you loved them and you used to know everything they were up to. It's just not worth it, believe me.

DO stay off of social media for a while. I know that it gave me terrible anxiety thinking about going and deleting all of our pictures or changing my relationship status (luckily I didn't have to do that second one because he did it first), so if that's the case, then you don't need to do it all right away. The best thing you can do is take a timeout from social media all together. I know that you think it'll make you feel better to post those lyrics to the song you guys used to sing in the car, but it won't. I know you think that the funny pictures your friends post will make you laugh and forget about your aching heart but chances are you will just end up surfing through his timeline and seeing something that you don't want to see.

BONUS TIP: Delete all of his friends on Facebook and DO NOT add the girl that you were always worried about when you were together. Just sayin'.

DO NOT download Tinder right after you break up. Just trust me on this one, you're probably not ready for this.

DO take this time to work on yourself. Do the things that you have always loved doing. Whether it's going to the gym, writing poetry, singing or just hanging out with all the friends that you may have ditched to spend time with him during the course of your relationship, you do you and let him to him. If you just sit around and miss him while he is out hunting Pokemon with his friends and going to concerts (that you two had tickets to before you broke up) then he's out living his life and you're only holding yourself back from living yours.

DO NOT sit around listening to sad music. You would think that this is a given, but I know that I did this probably more than I ever should have. Stay away from that playlist you made for him on Spotify, Adele, John Mayer, Sam Smith and almost ANY country song is probably going to have to stay off limits for a while. When you're missing your ex, everything already reminds you of them, so listening to any song that is about love or loss is just like pouring salt in the wounds.

DO put on your favorite dancing songs and make an effort to listen to the music that makes you smile. Get up and dance to some fun music, this will get your blood flowing and actually will make you feel better. When you think it's stupid and you just want to go lay in bed and sulk some more, keep dancing. Be the dancing queen, be your own Beyonce. Think about the empowering songs and the fun upbeat songs, make a playlist of those and keep it on repeat when you're in the car, at home in your room or whatever. The best thing you can do for yourself is to keep your influences positive to try and counteract the negativity you're experiencing while you try to get over him.

DO NOT keep his things as keepsakes. I'm not saying that you should give him back his stuff the day after you break up (unless you want to), but the last thing you need to be doing is sleeping in his shirts and smelling his cologne. I know it's hard to let the physical things go because they have memories tied to them of all the good times you shared, but it's time to make new good memories for yourself and stop holding on when he's already moved on.

DO put his things away somewhere where you won't reach for them. Give them to a friend or a sibling or even a parent to hide until you feel strong enough to return them. If he asks for them back sooner, well first of all that's really crappy of him and second, try to avoid seeing him when you return them. If he doesn't ask for them back then you have plenty of time to wait until you feel like you are in a good place without him before you return them to him. I will always kick myself for letting my ex see me crying while I handed him back his t-shirts because I wasn't ready to let go.

DO NOT text him asking to talk because if he says yes, then you're back to square one. The only reason I wanted to talk to my ex was because I wasn't convinced that this could really be over. After everything we had together I was SURE that there was something I could say to make him want to stay with me, but I promise you, there isn't anything you can say and you'll only leave his place hurting worse than you were when you got there. I know that's not easy to hear, but it's the truth.

DO put down your phone. I don't mean for good, but when you are feeling like texting him or calling him the best thing to do is put down your phone and breathe. If he wanted to talk to you, he would still be there. This is the hardest part for me because I have a hard time with change, I just wanted to tell him everything like I always did but the truth is, he doesn't want to know anymore. I know my friends have suggested deleting his number, so if you think that will help, do that. If you happen to have his number ingrained in your head then try this: when you feel like texting him, instead text your friends, your Mom or your sister, take your need to divulge somewhere else. If it helps think about it like this: he doesn't deserve to know what's going on in your life because he chose not to be a part of it.

BONUS TIP: Also do not text his friends.

Honestly, there are plenty of things that I would change about the way I handled this breakup if I could go back. I wish I had been able to read something like this article but hindsight is 20/20 so I'm putting this out there for everyone going through a tough breakup. Whether the relationship was on it's way out or it came too suddenly for you to process (like mine), breakups are never easy. I hope this helps at least one girl to get up and be strong even when her heart is broken. You are so wonderfully strong, you are beautiful and you will be okay.

Update: I was right, I didn't break down writing this article. If I can do it, so can you. Keep your head up, gorgeous, you're doing fine.