DERIVAT

l've been putting this off for far too long. ->

Two years ago, I looked in the mirror and didn't recognize the person staring back at me.

After nearly ten years of depression, isolation, and self-harm, I knew I needed to change. And I also knew there was a long way ahead of me.

There still is.

Only a few people knew how bad things really were. And while I know how much I hurt the people closest to me, I will always be grateful to those who still believed in me - even when I was close to actually giving up.

Now I have the strength to share what I wish I had known back then:

No matter how lost you feel right now, things will get better. You are not too broken, and you are not alone.

Maybe some of you can relate, at least in a way. My biggest hope is that this reaches the right people.