This isn’t easy, I know. Losing self-doubt is something you need to work on every single day if you want to become more confident in yourself. You are one of the best projects that you will ever work on, so the effort spent trying to better yourself is most certainly worth it. The biggest bit of advice that I can give you would be to stop comparing yourself to others. The way they look, what they own, and how many friends they have has no effect on your self worth. You are beautiful, you are wanted, and you are YOU. Embrace that in every single way because all this time spent doubting yourself, could be spent pushing yourself to be better. You are worth so much more than you give yourself credit for, give yourself a chance to prove that.
Someone fighting an eating disorder
You are stronger than this disorder and it does not define you. I don’t know why you developed an eating disorder, but I DO know that you can overcome it. Starving yourself means you are feeding your demons and those demons do not own you. The door to free yourself is always open; don’t stay in your own prison forever. If I could cast a spell and erase this distorted thought from your mind, I would. But unfortunately, there is no magical cure to eating disorders. No one can overcome this for you; this is your battle, and you are the only person who can be the hero. One small step everyday can make a huge difference in the grand scheme of things… please don’t give up. Recovery is always possible and you have so many people that would be will to help you, whether you know it or not.
Someone trying to lose/gain weight
First off you need to know that this is a long journey, you will not be where you want to be overnight. The only good news I have about this is that the time is going to pass either way, so you might as well use the time to propel you in the right direction. Take your time and make the most out of the journey, there is truly no ‘end goal’ here, think of this as a change of your lifestyle. You are bettering yourself everyday, don’t let yourself get discouraged, find your own motivation.
Someone who suffers from anxiety
You are not your anxiety. Fighting this war with yourself is exhausting. Stop overanalyzing everything because what is going to happen is going to happen whether you worry or not. The best piece of information that I can give you is to remember to breathe. Close your eyes and take deep breaths, feel your heart slowing down. Get out of bed, get dressed, and start your day, TODAY. Don’t wait for tomorrow, you never know if there will even be a tomorrow. You are the only person that can help yourself… your medicine and your support system can only push you so much. You are your only savior. Be strong for YOURSELF.
Someone who has a broken heart
This is one of the worst pains you can feel. There is not much that you can do but give yourself time to heal, and as I always say, sometimes time takes time. There will be other people who make you feel the way that your ex did, I promise. You know, they will probably even make you feel BETTER. This is a prime time for you to find yourself. Don’t look for love, affection, and attention in other people; find it within yourself to move on. Be strong for yourself. Lastly, please remember that losing this person does not bring down your self-worth. They are missing out on everything you have to offer, but there is someone who wants everything you have to offer. Give yourself time to grieve, and then push yourself to move forward, even if you don’t want to.
Someone who just lost a friend
There are plenty more where that came from. I have lost plenty of friends in my life, some that I never thought I would lose in my entire lifetime… but things change and so do people. We all grow and mature at different rates, sometimes we are lucky to run into people that are on the same paths as us, but when we find ourselves parting ways with someone we have grown such a strong bond with, it isn’t easy, and it never gets easier. You will find more friends and you will grow new bonds, with people you were always meant to be friends with. Don’t open a closed door; there is a reason why it was closed in the first place. There are far better things ahead of you, I promise.
Someone trying to find faith
There will be so many people telling you different things, please remember that the only important opinion is YOUR OWN. Believe in whatever makes you stronger. I was baptized Catholic. Since Grandma passed away, I have tried taking little steps towards finding my faith again. Having faith in God gives me hope that I will see Grandma again; it gives me hope that I am doing the right things, and it reminds me that I am loved. Don’t believe something because someone tells you to, believe because it makes you feel like a better person.
Someone who is about to/has hurt himself or herself
Even if you believe that you cannot find one person in this entire world who cares about your well being, please know one thing, I do. I care. If you need to hear more of that, reach out to me. You are so strong and you have a reason to be on this earth. You were created for a reason; please remember that. If you give me 100 reasons as to why you are not meant to be here, or 100 reasons why you deserve to put yourself in pain, I will give 100 reasons that negate everything you just told me. You are worthy of love and you have so much to offer to others, don’t waste your talents. This is your turn around; this is where you get the courage to say “I am not doing this anymore because I am worth so much more.” Believe in yourself, because I sure as hell believe in you. Tough times don't last, but tough people do... and I know you are tough. Be brave and continue on.
Someone whose loved one just passed away
This pain doesn’t seem to go away for me. One thing that I have learned is that you don’t ever really get over the death, you just learn to live without it. I call this phase in my life my new normal, because it is not how it was before Grandma passed away, things are completely different in some ways. I have learned how to live without her, but I by no means have ‘moved on’. Sometimes things happen that we can’t explain… and we would give anything to reverse what happened, but one thing that I am starting to understand is that everything happens for a reason. We have to accept that there will always be a void of emptiness in our hearts where this person used to reside. There is no replacing them. Your entire life could change at the drop of a dime (as you know); make sure you cherish the time you have with your loved ones. Also—remember, although time does take time sometimes, remember to see the good in the situation as well. Maybe it is because this person is out of pain, maybe you learned a deeper lesson, or maybe you were able to see friends and family that you haven’t seen in years to help you mourn. Keep looking for positives because even though it may seem like they are not there, they are… sometimes you just have to look a little bit harder.
Someone wanting to change the world
The world needs more of you. You are a special kind of person because it takes someone with a big heart to put effort into something like this. Whether you want to impact the lives of people, the environment, or animals… don’t stop what you are doing. There are going to be many roadblocks throughout your journey, but don’t get discouraged because good things are hard to come by and they take more effort to get. If you can keep the negative press out of your mind, you will be golden. You are going to do so much good to this world and I hope one day I can be as hard working and diligent as you.