To the Friend Who Doesn’t Know Her Worth: You Deserve Better

You deserve better. Deep down, I know you have heard this before. But late at night, when every thought and anxiety rise to the surface, you may need a reminder.

Listen to the voice telling you that you deserve more.

That’s the voice that knows your story and how far you’ve come. You’ve made progress, even if you don’t acknowledge it. Recognizing that someone is a phone call or text away, instead of indulging into darkness is progress. Block out the noise of the ones who don’t understand; the people who try to challenge you because they think they get it. They don’t. They think you’re exhausted because you went to bed too late, when in reality it was your insomnia having a silent battle with your anxiety. Only a small handful of people will know what that means and how to help.

Sometimes you need to put your faith and trust into a friend who understands. A friend who has walked different paths but shares painfully similar experiences. A friend you can trust. A friend who knows that 2am is the bewitching hour for anxieties, worry and insomnia. A friend who knows to celebrate the little victories.

There will be moments when you feel like you can’t handle it. But I know you can. Everything will be happening at once and you’ll feel like your the only one who understands it. But I know you can. I can’t take away the things that happened, the things that tried or changed you. I can only help you move forward and become the resiliently brave and beautiful friend, I admire so much.

You deserve to live freely. You deserve to have adventure. You deserve to have experiences.

You deserve it all.

As your friend, I want all of that for you. And as your person, I’ll be in your corner, always.