Hi, Invisiblenot, your story reminded me of my past self. I'll share my story here.

I was madly in love with a guy before when I was younger. He sort of liked me too but he never made the commitment. Then one day, sth happened, he dumped me for another woman (or so I thought, long story), and left me in pain.

Well, it took me 8 years to finally let go of the memory and feelings for him. I learnt a lot and tried many ways to forget him, but just couldn't.

The pain was real. I cried till my heart ached with physical pain, I cried till I thought I would become blind soon, couldn't sleep at night, contemplated suicide too...

I sought counselling as well, talked to my close friends and cousins, read counselling books, tried to numb myself... but the pain and memory were still there.

While I was in pain, that guy was dating girls. I saw him changing gf after gf after gf...

I'm a Christian and I believe in God, so I resorted to Him. He said I need to do 3 things:

1. Forgive yourself. Stop condemning yourself. Start loving yourself again.

2. Forgive him and wish him all the best from your heart.

3. Find your meaning in life again. Re-define your life and re-route it. Think of the people and things you have neglected while you were down. Rise from where you have fallen. Get back to the community whether you feel like it or not.

It was so damn tough. It took me about 3 years to rebuild my whole life, set things on the right track, rebuild my self-esteem and confidence, and to really treat him as a normal friend.

Now, when I look at his photos with his gf now, I don't feel the pain any more. & I still believe in love. I know my Mr Right will come along the way.

When you feel that way, you know you are fully healed, with love, confidence and hope in your heart.