Three years ago, I had my first real heartbreak.

I thought I would never love again.

Truthfully, I thought my life was ending. It was the first "serious" relationship I had, and when it ended I would have never seen it coming. Let alone over a text.

Yes, you read that right. I was dumped over a text, while I was sitting in chemistry class.

So there I was, sitting in chem, completely blindsided. I tried so hard to keep myself from completely losing it in class, but, the tears came anyway.

And they did not stop.

It seemed as though the tears came constantly for months. I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep. And I barely set foot in my room because it seemed as though his name was written on the walls.

I didn't sleep in my bed for months. I lost around 15 pounds. The pain that I was feeling quite literally took over every aspect of my life.

This pain was not glamorous.

It was dropping to my knees sobbing when I got home from school because I held everything in for too long.

It was skipping meals because the thought of eating made my stomach turn.

It was waking up every hour at night because I saw him in my dreams again.

It was not what you see in movies.

When I say it took me months to finally stop crying, I am not exaggerating. And even when the tears stopped, the knot in my chest was in no hurry to leave.

I swore I would never be able to pick up the pieces.

But, I carried on. I knew that at some point, I had to put myself back together.

There were days that all I was able to do was breathe, and that's okay.

Then there were the days when I thought I could take on the world, and that's okay too.

I picked up my pieces.

I regained my appetite, I slept through the night, I stopped seeing him around every corner, and I made it through the day without shedding a tear. And after what seemed like forever, the knot in my chest went away.

But one single thought never left my mind; "I will never feel the same about another person again."

...And I was right.

The saying "you never have the same love twice" is beyond true. But, you never quite understand what it means until you experience it yourself, at least I didn't. I also never really understood what it meant when someone said "heartbreak changes you." But, boy, do I understand now.

I grew, and I matured. I learned that good things take time, and I learned how to forgive. I figured out that if someone can break you down to the point that you lose all sight who you used to be and be completely okay with it, they are not worth another tear.

I no longer resent my ex-boyfriend, let alone really think about him, but the pain that I felt is part of me. Believe it or not, it has helped me become the person I am today.

So, three years later here I am. Happier than I have ever been, in love with my best friend, and working toward my dream job. Doing what I thought was impossible three years ago. I truly could not ask for anything more.

I'm proud of the person I have become, and I hope that all girls who have felt this same pain know exactly how strong they really are.