I’m pretty sure I “fell in love” about three times during high school. I always thought that something was wrong with me because no relationship felt right. Clearly, I was just going along with the status quo. Lots of people were dating, so why shouldn’t I? It was fun, I will admit that. High school was the biggest dating game.
Dating in high school is tough. It is the hard definition of dramatic. If something goes wrong, it's the end of the world. I look back at those times where I would stay up all night waiting for a text I was never going to get, and I cry laughing thinking about it. Those guys weren’t very important at all. I wasted so much time worrying about what they thought about me.
If I could tell my 16-year-old-self anything, it would be to pay more attention to your friends, your family and maybe ditch the guy that probably won’t even text you back because he peaked his junior year and his pride is overflowing.
Guys in high school don’t know what they want. Chances are, in high school you don’t know what you want either, no matter how mature you might think you are. My interests have evolved immensely since graduating and yours will too. Once you leave and go off to college (if you do), you will be exposed to a whole new world with a ton of new people. You don’t have to end up with someone from your hometown.
It’s hard because no matter how mature you might be, you are not even a legal adult until you are close to graduating. Also, remember that girls mature faster than boys do. You might have the mindset of a young adult while he’s still going through puberty (or so it seems). If you think you are going to find your “soul mate” when you are fifteen, the odds are not good. Stop listening to Taylor Swift. I’m sure there are those very few couples that can make it last, and I really do applaud them, but let’s be real, it’s rare. It's practically impossible. Especially now that every little thing is all social media based, and you keep finding your boyfriend liked other girls pictures on Instagram.
I compromised parts of myself to get guys to like me. I lost quite a bit of self-esteem by letting guys walk all over me. That's something that is really easy to do when you see the guy you like every day and he won’t give you the time of day. Don’t change yourself for a guy. Don’t change yourself for a girl. It’s not healthy to put all of your energy into a relationship that’s just temporary. Don’t just date to date. If you can’t picture a future with someone, my advice is don’t bother.
Most high school relationships are full of jealousy and mistrust. Know who you are before you decide to commit to a relationship.
