These last few weeks, life has been full of ups and downs. Nothing is what it used to be, and mentally, I was so drained I could hardly remember my name.

I lost my love for writing, I could hardly get out of bed to go to class. I felt like I was losing everybody. So, I did what I needed to do and took a few steps back and focused on myself.

During this time, I did some deep soul searching and reevaluated my life as a whole.

I found that I was letting people into my life who had no right to be there.

This, in turn, was wearing me down, because I would give and give and never think of myself.

I removed these people from my life. I caused a lot of pain in myself and others, but it was much needed and well worth it.

I also found that I was overthinking and over-planning everything that had to do with anything. I felt as though I needed to be in constant control of everything, and I was doing way too much.

I never thought I would be the person that would need to cut back on things in life. I always thought that I would be the one to take on the world and make it out on top, but I quickly learned, that is not the purpose of living life.

The purpose of living, is to truly see, to feel deep within, to grow, change, and learn how to become a better person.

By doing so much, I was not allowing myself to, "Stop and smell the roses". I was only thinking of all of the horrible things that were happening to me, and I was so self-centered about it.

Being knocked down, and going through this pain, was one of the best things to ever happen to me. It opened my eyes, it brought me joy, and most importantly, it brought me closer to God.

No, I don't know everything about life, no I am not perfect, but I know that no matter what I choose to do in life, I will always have God by my side.

Time away from everything is much needed, especially when life gets stressful. Never feel bad for taking the time to focus on yourself. S

elf care is super important and is one of the main elements to get you through daily life.