I've come up with a lot of excuses on why not to write this article. I've written a lot of "filler" articles instead of taking the time to talk about this topic. But now, I've finally come to terms and decided I needed...no wanted, to share this with you. Because I know I'm not the only one who's gone through this. Heck, this happens way too often and girls, guys, anyone reading this, just know, if you've ever been cheated on, like me, know that it is NOT because of you, or something you did. It's not your fault, and it's not something you should blame yourself for. That's all on the significant other. Even if it happens more than once.

Before I was ever in a relationship I told myself, if I ever got cheated on I'd slap the guy and walk away. But that's a lot easier said than done. You find the person you like, you gain these tremendous feelings for them, and you get comfortable. You get used to texting someone every day, having someone to tell everything to, and getting to spend all your time with them. All of these things are good memories, and then when that dreaded day unfortunately comes, you have to look at these memories differently. Everything you thought you knew has completely changed.

You feel sick, betrayed, hurt, angry, scared; these are all common emotions. It took me a long time to finally accept what had happened. And I didn't get cheated on just once, it happened a few times, and honestly, it may even happen again. But if it does happen again, I'll know how to handle it.

After the first time I got cheated on, I had the worst trust issues. I spent a lot of my time trying to find a bunch of people to be with so I could feel better about myself. If one person didn't want me, I'd find a hundred others who did. I had no self-worth, no self-respect. I'd find great guys to be with and ditch them before I could get too attached because I was afraid that they'd hurt me. I spent so much of my time partying and trying to pretend that I wasn't this big mess when in reality I was just digging myself a deeper grave.

I went on like this for three years. I finally can say that after these three years I've learned a lot. I spend all my time loving myself now. The key to success is being happy. You need to be happy with who you are and work for yourself. I didn't realize how harmful my actions were until a few months ago. Every day is a new gift, and I can feel myself improving. I'm so proud of who I am now. I work out every day, I eat so much better, I'm writing a lot more, and I go to sleep early and wake up early. I work and volunteer and it's amazing how much this change has affected me.

It's true what they say; "the only place you go from rock bottom is up." I didn't think I could be worse than what I was, but somehow I continuously surprised myself with how low I could go. And sometimes I think that maybe this needed to happen in order for me to change and be the best person I am. I'm not 100%, but I know that in time I will be. For now, I'll continue to love myself, and care about me only. It's not selfish to love yourself, not at all. Take care of you, because at the end of the day, you really truly only have yourself, and that's all you need.