by Laura Leigh Fields

Created on: February 06, 2007   Last Updated: May 08, 2007

I remember going to a dance in high school with a black eye and a broken nose. My dad lost his temper, though it wasn't something unusual for him to do. Even though to this day, he still denies ever having done so. I cried out for help from a guidance counselor at school, and I was labeled a liar and put into a home for troubled youth.

My whole teenage life, I lived with the pain. No one ever helped me and as a result, I dove farther into depression and bipolar. I continued to seperate myself from the world, and I never had many real relationships or friendships.

Finally, I came to the point that I didn't want to cry about it anymore. I got up off my butt and moved on. It isn't as easy as I made that sentence sound though. Below are a few things that might help.

* Start therapy as quick as possible. Talk about it. Tell the story as many times as you have to. Tell friends, family, or neighbors. Get it off your chest. Sometimes, it feels better to just to feel like it isn't a seret anymore.

* Don't expect the person that abused you to feel remorse. Sometimes, they will and want to make amends. Other times, they may blame it one you or even deny it all together. They may never come to terms with it, but you still have to take care of you.

* Take up a hobby. Teach yourself to do something fun. If you do not spend all your time dwelling on the pain, it is often easier to move on. You could also open a new world you never existed with all the fun things you discover.

* Keep a journal. Keeping track of your emotions, and feeling more comfortable with expressing yourself often helps more than you could ever know.

* Take things one day at a time. The pain may never go away but, you must learn to set that aside, as hard as it may seem. Life must go on.

* Treat yourself to a makeover, an ice cream sunday, a new wardrobe, anything you want. There is only one you, and after all you have been through you deserve it.

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