I've always disliked the saying "if you can't love yourself, then how are you going to love someone else?"

That is so false.

Everyone struggles with self-esteem issues, and many people have mental illnesses that make it genuinely difficult for them to find positive traits in themselves. That doesn't mean they lack the ability to love anything at all. I can still love my significant other, my family, my friends, my pets, even if I'm having a bad mental health day.

I don't always love myself. I rarely do. However, I found someone who loves me even when I struggle to love myself. To him, I would like to say thank you.

Thank you for always being my #1 supporter, and never giving up on me.

Thank you for still holding on tight when I'm struggling for days or weeks.

Thank you for helping me forget what it feels like to be alone.

Thank you for being such an incredible human being.

Everyone like me deserves someone like you. I never thought I would be lucky enough to meet someone who could love me through all of my insecurities and mood swings. I figured being single was just the way things were going to be, but you changed that.

It is easy for me to sit on the other side of this and tell other people that they'll find love because I was there once and I know that it sounds like complete bullshit.

Even if you have convinced yourself that you are unloveable, you are very loveable.

This man has taught me that there are wonderful humans out there.

They will love you with every fiber of their being and prove your self-deprecating conscience wrong.

They will forgive you for the times you might not deserve it and love you just the same.

The feelings that come with having a healthy, stable, trusting relationship are unmatched. You will continue to grow with each other and they will become your best friend. When you look back at the start of your relationship after several months together, you will realize just how much you two have changed (in a good way). Your relationship will be stronger, and you will never want to live your life without your significant other.

To the man who loves me when I can't love myself, thank you for being everything to me.