I was in a relationship and dated the same guy my junior and senior year of high school. Now looking back, I know it was a very toxic relationship. At the beginning of the relationship, everything was great and he was the sweetest guy on Earth. As the relationship went on, things started to change dramatically and he became a completely different person. He became possessive and he always needed to know where I was and who I was with. Soon, we stopped going out on dates and he only wanted to do one thing.

Despite these things, I stayed with him and wanted to work through everything. Then one day I found out that he had been cheating on me for a while with a girl who he told me was his cousin, but that was a lie. I confronted him about it and he seemed to get really upset and he started to cry saying he was so sorry. I thought he was being genuine at the time, but I soon found out that he was just really good at manipulating me and other girls. After I found out about her, we sat in his Jeep and talked.

I forgave him for everything and decided not to break up with him.

Things from there just kept going downhill, but I didn't want to give up - I wanted to keep trying to make things work for us. Then the day before he left for a trip to Mexico, he broke up with me. I was devastated and cried for a whole week. When he got back from Mexico, he wanted to get back together and, me being the person that I am, I let him back into my life. Things were okay for a few weeks, but then things became worse than ever. A few months later, he broke up with me over text and I haven't talked to him since.

I am still fighting with everything that went on with my ex to this day. He really messed with my head and my heart. I was in the mental hospital for five days because of him, which was no walk in the park. I am now in counseling and take medication for the damage that he did to me while we were in that abusive relationship.

If I do ever talk to him or see him again, I will thank him. I will thank him for showing me exactly what I don't want in a relationship. I will thank him for breaking up with me because now I am in the best relationship that I have ever been in. I have a guy that treats me like a princess and loves me even with all of my flaws. Because of him and our relationship, I am now a stronger person and know what I want in a relationship. So thank you to him. If I can survive this, then I can survive anything, and so can you.