I set up YouHaveAFuture.org to help make sure that you know that things won’t be bad forever. No matter what issues you’re facing — depression, anxiety, bullying, heartbreak, or whatever — you do have a future. I know that sometimes it may be hard to see or believe that, but it is true.
Unfortunately, our minds like to tell us otherwise, especially when we’re faced with difficult times.
Right now, someone is reading this and thinking to themselves, “You have no idea what I’m going through. There is no way I can make it through this!”
You’re half right. I don’t know what you’re going through, but I do know you can make it through. How do I know that? Give me 600 words, and I’ll show you.
This is why I know you’ll make it.
Your life has had difficult moments before, but this time, things are hitting harder. They are weighing against you with so much pressure on you that you think you can’t win. You feel hopeless and can’t see any way out. You know that this is the thing that finally breaks you.
I get that. I’ve been there, felt like that, and it took me a long time to make it out. Many others have been to that place as well. Some never returned.
I wish I could go back for those who never made it out. I wish I could show them the future they missed. If I could, they would see that what they felt was only temporary. They would see that what was hurting them would not last.
This is something you will eventually see, though right now, that may be difficult. Many things can put us in the place you’re in now.
Something terrible may have happened to you. Someone may have hurt you in unimaginable ways. You may be struggling to keep your head above water. You may be faced with constant pain and feeling as though you shouldn’t exist.
I don’t know what happened for you to feel this way, but I do know that you are stronger than you realize. I know that you have been through difficult moments before, and you fought through them. The universe couldn’t stop you before, and it won’t stop you now.
I know that you will keep going, just as you always have. You will show yourself that you can fight through it all. Yes, you will fall, and you will hurt, but you will get back up and say, “Fuck this shit, I’m not done, goddamnit!”
You will see that despite everything that has happened to you, you’re still here, and you are NOT giving up now! You’ve come this far, and you have much more to do. You didn’t last this long just to give in, and you will not let anything take your life away from you.
You know that you’ve managed to jump over some pretty big hurdles in your life, many that others thought you couldn’t. Right now, some people don’t think you can make it. Some people don’t want you to make it.
But those people can kiss your ass. Because you don’t need them to believe in you.
I know how strong you are because I know what challenges people have faced. Yes, it is true that we are all individuals, and things affect us differently. That doesn’t mean you can’t break through the bullshit against you. You may be scared and think that you’re not tough enough. You may think that it’s not worth it to keep trying. You may think that no one would give a shit if you were here anymore.
But you are wrong.
You may not be able to see the path ahead nor the future you have coming, but they are both there. You will find them.
As human beings, we have had to face many challenges that we should have ended us. Some, we thought we would never make it out from.
But we’re still here. You’re still here. And you will make it. You’re a human being. Overcoming shit is what we do.
Keep going. This is not the end of your story, just a chapter in a very long book. Things are about to turn around. You do have a better future than your present. And there are people who can help.
You are not now, nor will you ever be, alone.
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If you take nothing else from this, just know that your problems and negative feelings are temporary. You will get through them. It will probably be difficult, but you can do it. People have had to fight through some seriously screwed-up shit over the thousands of years we’ve been here. You can make it. You’re a people, after all. It’s kind of our thing.
If you ever feel like you can’t make it, read through this again. Print it. Tape it to your wall. Memorize it and recite it back to yourself.
Just know that this may be a crappy chapter in the book of your life, but it sure as hell isn’t the end. Keep going. There are many awesome surprises you’ll find as things go on.
