It's hard to walk away from things, especially if they're a big part of your life for a significant amount of time. Over the years, I've walked away from friends, relationships, and situations that just weren't right for me.

Don't get me wrong, it was never an easy decision to walk away. Standing up for myself and doing what's right for me and my health is difficult, and it honestly never felt like the right decision at first. I was worried about how the other person was feeling even though I was really hurt.

I defended people when they did bad things, even when I was the victim.

Playing the victim is never right. However, you can't just walk around and hurt people and then wonder why they no longer want to associate with you. It's just not fair. Walking away is OK, and you don't get to tell me when I'm allowed to be hurt by the things you do to me.

Life's too short to spend it around people that aren't willing to treat you like you matter. I matter, and it took me way too long to realize that. Your worth isn't defined by how other people treat you.

I refuse to sit around and let myself be judged and made to feel bad every single time there's conflict. No one's blameless, and that doesn't give you the right to walk away like you did nothing to me.

A lot of people have gotten offended because they don't understand why I don't want them in my life. It's not fair for you to ignore what happened, and it's not fair for you to ignore my feelings.

My feelings are valid, please don't make me think otherwise.

Your feelings are valid, too. But, healing for me involves walking away. I've come back to people and left people behind completely. The difference involves how you act when I decide to walk away and work on myself.

You can't get offended if you hurt me and I decide to walk away. It's a fact of life that sometimes, people aren't good for each other. Don't try to force it.