First, I want you to know that I think you are brave.

I don’t know where this letter finds you. I’ve written and rewritten it so many times, trying to find the right words to say that it has left my head spinning.

The truth is, I’ve learned that there is nothing you can say. There is nothing I can say or do that will erase that part of your story, or will make the healing any easier. I don’t know your situation or what you've gone through, but I promise you, you are not stuck in this part of your story. Maybe you already know that. I hope you do.

I hope you know that the definition of a survivor is, “someone who lives in spite of”. I want you to know that I am so proud of you, and that in spite of your feelings, you are not alone.

You are strong, even when you feel weakest. Those might be the days when you can’t understand how you could ever recover from this, and then you take one tiny step forward. That step is different for everyone. For me, it is reaching out to my friends, family, and the people I trust most. It’s letting them in, despite how afraid I am.

I want you to know that I see you. You are heard and you are valued. Your courage inspires me and others to keep going.

When I look around at the survivors that I know, I see them in all different points in their journey, and that is how I know that I am going to make it. That's how I know, that you will too.

We will survive this, it’s what we do.

With hope,
A fellow survivor