Looking on the Bright Side

[Lefty_Epee]

My family is toxic

Yes but you have friends and other people's families who have been and would be more than willing to support you through anything

I was raped

Yes but now you know how and what to advocate for, how to protect others and educate them to protect themselves

I had no childhood

Yes but now you can explore things for the first time with the only restrictions being money and time

I'm jealous, angry, scared

Yes but you're learning to overcome those urges and emotions and allowing life to just happen, you're allowing the possibility for more positive outcomes to be an option rather than the worst

Days won't feel as good as they do right now

Yes but there will still be positives everyday, you just have to be willing to look for them and accept them

Here is my combination of coping and processing skills I learned from my time in DBT therapy. It is a mixture of positive affirmations and radical acceptance. I am trying to be better for my girlfriend, my friends, and myself. I have let my issues define me, my life, and my choices. Today is a good day. I woke up, I can walk, talk, see, hear, eat, breathe, and get an education. I have a loving girlfriend, her amazing family, friends who are reaching out to me because they're worried about me, I have the privileges to make decent money and invest it in hobbies as coping mechanisms and to make gifts for others. I have God who has stood by me, even when my faith was nonexistent. I am here, I am alive, I am grateful for it. Find something good today, and expand upon it. acknowledge the negatives, accept what you cannot change, and find a way to make it a strength rather than a weakness. While our issues, traumas, and conditions are inherently a part of us, they do not define us. We decide that. I am a leader, a lover, a friend, a dedicated worker, and someone who now is putting forth their foot and walking towards the light rather than hiding in the dark. Have faith, it will take you farther than you'd expect. I hope that someone gains something from this. I wish you all happiness, healing, and for today to be better than the norm.

[Hidden]

Thank you so much for this! I really needed to hear this! I've been through a lot and have been going through a lot but I am making it! Your message is very encouraging!! I hope you have a great rest of your day!! I am proud of you!

[Midori]

That is a brilliant list of things!