Falling in love after having your heart broken time and time again has got to be the most terrifying, exciting, crazy thing to happen. While I can only speak from personal experience, I hope this article resonates with at least one person or promises hope to others that heartbreak isn't the end of the world.

About 7 months ago, my world was turned upside down when the guy I was dating cheated on me.

My heart was absolutely shattered and I didn't think I'd ever get over it. I know, I know, such a naive and childish thing to thing, but I'd say that's pretty typical. Any teenager who has their heart broken by someone they love has a melodramatic breakdown and thinks the world is crumbling down around them for a while.

At the time, I truly believed I would never heal. I ached every day, my heart physically hurt. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat, I totally isolated myself from everyone and everything around me. Eventually, I started to feel better- and then one day, it just clicked. I realized that the boy I was missing so much was the guy I had met nearly a year before and the guy who cheated on me and broke my heart was completely different.

The boy I missed wasn't the physical boy who hurt me - it was the idea of him I had in my mind that I had fabricated and polished so well in the absence of him.

The idea I made up of him in my head was a perfect, ideal version of him— the way he seemed when we first met, before I ever imagined he'd do me harm.

The day that I realized I wasn't in love with him but rather than this perfect idea of him was the start of a new beginning.

It's been months since this has happened. Time has gone on, seasons have changed, and I've healed. I started living my life the way I wanted, making tons of friends, going out, and even flirting around again. I sort of accepted that maybe love wasn't for me or maybe I just wasn't meant to find someone perfect for me for a long, long time. Until the perfect guy stumbled into my life at the craziest and most unexpected time - and the rest was history.

From the moment I met him, he swept me off my feet. He's got words that could keep me listening until the end of time - the way he speaks has the cadence of my favorite song. He's intelligent, kind, selfless, and incredibly handsome, both inside and out. Before I knew it, I realized I was falling in love again. My first thoughts were "holy shit," and "oh my God" and "oh my GOD, what am I doing?"… you get the gist.

I was wholeheartedly ready for this kid to break my heart.

Eventually, we ended up becoming a couple and here we are still together today! We haven't been together long, but time really doesn't define feelings. I'm the happiest I've been in a LONG time. He pushes me to strive for greater things. He believes in me and in my goals and aspirations. He makes me laugh my head off and he's so good at cheering me up when I'm down.

I could talk forever about him, but all I'm going to say is that he's the dream guy I never knew I wanted or needed, but now he's here and I can't imagine life without him.

To those who are dealing with a broken heart right now or think they don't have someone out there who's going to love them for them— I promise, it'll come. When you least expect it, when you start to have doubts, it'll come and it'll sweep you off your feet.

If anyone ever needs anyone to talk to, I'm here to listen. Your heart is resilient— it'll be broken time and time again most likely. And when "the one" comes along and puts all the broken pieces back together and makes your heart feel fuller than ever before, you'll know.

Keep your heart open, love infinitely, and believe in the good things coming.