I’ve experienced sadness, but nothing hurt as much as finding out the person I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with had betrayed me. We were together for three years, and within a month of being away at separate colleges, I found out he had been cheating on me with someone else. Now, two years later, I truly never thought I would be at this point, the point where I want to say two words to you: Thank you.

Thank you for taking my life and turning it into a living nightmare.

I wouldn’t wish the pain you caused me on my worst enemy. I can’t even begin to explain the amount of nights I lay awake wondering what I could have done differently and feeling that it was my fault. I thank you for this because I learned that it wasn’t my fault and that there wasn’t something I could have done. The outcome was inevitable and completely out of my control.

Thank you for pushing me to the point of feeling like I was worthless.

There is no worse pain then being rejected by the one person who meant everything to you. It was physically painful to lose you, and my heart ached at the thought of you with someone else. I felt worthless and like I didn’t matter, like I was nothing. This pain and feeling of worthlessness lead me to independence. It forced me to go on with my life on my own. It forced me to find happiness within myself.

Thank you for showing me that not everyone is who you think that they are.

I never truly understood the term “love is blind” until you brought me to my lowest point. At first, I was obsessing over our good memories and all the amazing times you gave me and denying what was right in front of me. I convinced myself that you were the same person you were when I first fell in love with you, but the reality was that person no longer existed. People change, that’s just life and something everyone has to accept. Thank you for helping me understand that, as hard as it is, not everyone is meant to stay in your life. People come and go, and I learned to accept the things I can’t change.

Thank you for hurting me so bad that I now know what I deserve.

At the time, I thought you were everything. I was willing to do absolutely anything to get you to want me. I drove myself crazy and constantly told myself that it wouldn’t get better anywhere else. But eventually you reach a point where you have to let go. They say time heals all wounds, and I don’t necessarily believe that. These wounds have made me who I am today, and I’ve learned to love this person as they heal.

I will never understand why you did this to me, but I’m done searching for the answer. You taught me that relationships aren’t supposed to be this complicated. You should never give someone the power to make you feel like you don’t matter, and if I’ve learned anything, it’s that I do. Life is full of heartbreak and tragedy, but you are in charge of what you decide to do with it. I am choosing to move on and let go. So thank you for giving up on us because it feels so good to finally be free.