Laughing Through the Dark Times

So, everyone handles breakups differently. Some people develop a system to deal with it. Some people just fall into darkness. Each ending relationship brings something different to the table.

When my 9-year relationship ended in flames after finding out she was sleeping around, I was angry. Very angry. This was an easy thing to keep me motivated to get myself better. Hitting the gym, going out with different friends, meeting new girls. Honestly, the best thing to happen to me mentally and physically.

Since then, I have dated many women, most end amicably and usually it seems to be a mutual split which works well. We had fun but no hard feelings either way. Best course of what can happen.

But man, this last girl fucked me up! I have never been in a spot like this. Anxious, depressed, tired. I was looking up pilot school to become a pilot and fly away from this area. I was lost. I felt so stuck in the world with my job, my friends, and my life. It was a bizarre spot to be in. Even my closest friends were confused as to what happened to me.

So, I dove down the rabbit hole of self-help apps that Instagram kept pushing out. And in a state of depression, I paid for 3 different self-help apps (Blinkist, Headway, and Masterclass). I signed up for 2 different fitness apps (Mad Muscle, Workout with Me) and even signed up for the app ‘Meetup’ to go out and meet people with similar interests.

I have used these apps a total of 2 times in the 3 months since I went through my bullshit. And the kicker is, I bought a year subscription to all of them. I spent several hundred dollars on self-help things to not use them. I created an account and joined several groups on ‘Meetup’ and have never been to any meetup or even commented in the groups. So now I see them on my home screen every day because why wouldn’t I keep them there in plain sight to never use them, lol.

Buying self-help apps, trying to figure out if I wanted to move out of the area and start a new job away from everyone I know and start completely over. I did all of this just to realize the change I needed was adopting a dog. Once I realized that I did care for the girl, but I loved waking up to her dog and coming over to her dog every day, I came to the conclusion that that is what I needed to fix me.

2 months later, the best decision I made was not any of the self-help crap I paid for and ignored. Or any of the gym apps I paid for and never used (my own workouts are better). The best decision I made to get me out of my funk and depression was starting to look and eventually adopting a dog.

As much as a breakup hurts, life goes on. Don’t be like me and search for things to make your health better doing self-help. Just adopt a dog, be active with the dog, and enjoy the love that this animal brings you. You will be happier with a loyal companion than with the thoughts of “the girl who got away.”