Heartbreak might be the worst thing in the whole entire world. As a matter of fact, it is undoubtedly one of the worst feelings one will ever face. Heartbreak can come in many forms, but the thing is, it is one thing every single person can relate to. I hate to say it, but if you haven’t felt it yet, you will at some point. The good news is that this excruciating pain is just temporary, ask anyone who has gone through it. Time really does heal.

A few months ago I was 5 years deep in a relationship I swore would never end… in fact everyone told me they thought we were going to get married. Let me just tell you: things change, people change, and there is nothing you can really do about it. Sometimes you have to do what is best for you and your own mental health, but if someone really wants to be in your life they will be sure to find a way. For me, he didn’t, and you know what, it’s for the better because I could not be happier than I am right now. Time really does heal.

At first, I couldn’t go even an hour without crying and it got to a point where me and my roommate would keep a tally for how many mental breakdowns I would have. The chart is still hanging on my door because I really think it’s a world record. I felt so empty that going out wouldn’t even numb the pain, and for anyone that knows me, I love to party so this is just absurd. The truth is, there is nothing that can distract you from the pit that will sit in your stomach and the lump that will rise in your throat. It is just something you have to deal with for a little while. I was that girl who wasn’t scared to cry in public anymore because it was something that I had gotten used to. I was the girl that just couldn’t be alone for a while or my thoughts would drive me insane. I was truly and completely broken, but guess what? Now I am not… time really does heal.

After about a month of trying to hold on, I realized that you just can’t beg someone to love you, it doesn’t work that way. It came to a point where I finally knew what I deserved, so it was time to let go. I cannot describe how thankful I am for the moment where I finally decided to stop having hope. I found out that this hope is what was prolonging the pain. Your journey to becoming okay again will not begin until you fully accept that it is over. I don’t care how it ended. It could’ve been the messiest break up in the world (mine is up there), you will be okay again, I promise you. Time really does heal.

I am so proud to say that I am fully healed. There is nothing more liberating than finally feeling the pain fade day by day until finally it does not exist. I have no words for how truly happy I am in this moment. I wake up and go to sleep so grateful. Grateful for this whole experience: the love, the lessons, the breaking, and the healing. Grateful how my life is turning out, because I do believe this all happened for a reason. Grateful to finally be able to look back and realize how unhappy I was after all. You will feel this way too. You will see life in a whole new way after overcoming the greatest pain of all. You will see that time really does heal and you will feel like you can conquer anything.

If you are broken hearted right now, I know that none of this will make the pain go away, but maybe it will give you hope that someday soon it will. Some of you may read this and think I’m a rare case and there is no possible way you will get over it. To those of you who feel defeated and doubtful, I was in your shoes too, and I can’t wait until the day you can say I was right… and believe me that day will come (and it may be a whole lot sooner than you think). Right now it may feel like you just can’t deal with it any longer, but hang tight and hold onto hope because the greatest thing that came out of being heartbroken was the realization that time really does heal.