Heartbreak is never easy. It honestly sucks. There’s a point where you feel like you’re never going to get over it, but I promise you, you will. Recently, I went through this heartbreak that I swore I was never going to get past. It wrecked me to my core and I couldn’t tell you how much time I spent crying. Then one day, it clicked. This wasn’t the end of my love life (also I’m only 18, what do I know about love?), and this certainly wasn’t going to be the last time I would convince myself I was in love. I have so many places, people, and dogs to fall in love with that I certainly can’t be washed up at 18.

While I was healing after my heartbreak, my favorite thing to do was spend time with my friends even if we weren’t doing anything. I would call my friends to come over and take a nap or sit in my room with me just so I wouldn’t allow myself the option to wallow and think about “what if."

Another thing I did was read. I read so many books that I’m pretty sure I set a personal record, which is saying a lot because I’m a reader. Books gave me the chance to escape the sadness that surrounded me in my everyday life and picture the world of a brand new character. Their lives, adventures, and misfortunes became mine for a short while and it was amazing.

I cried, a lot. A lot more than I’m proud to admit. For the first few weeks, I let myself emotionally obsess about what happened leading up to this heartbreak. It’s all I thought about in my free time. In all honesty, I was a mess. My roommates can vouch for this. But, this helped me get all of the negative emotions out of my system that would one day destroy my usual cheery self. Crying helps cleanse the soul.

Last, but certainly not least, I prayed. I asked God to show me why He took away one of the most important people in my life so suddenly. I asked Him why me. I asked Him to show me the light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes I forget that there is a bigger plan for me out there than what I see, and praying helped me clear my head of the anger from my “plan” being destroyed. I think it should be noted that even though I’m not a perfect Catholic, this simple action restored my faith in God’s plan for me.

Yes, heartbreak sucks. I won’t fight you on that, but sometimes out of heartbreak comes realization and self-discovery. I know now that I’m so much more forgiving than I previously believed. I know that though I might have weak moments, I’m a strong, powerful woman. I know that I have such a bright future and I don’t need to be loved by someone in order to validate that. Though I hope that whoever is reading this isn’t going through a heartbreak now, if you are, please remember to look at yourself in the mirror and smile because you are doing the best with what you have. That’s all you really can do. Do your best and keep trudging on.