Love, betrayal, and reclaiming my worth- Alberta 23

Never have I imagined myself going through the same experience

I've often heard people talking about betrayal, but never have I imagined myself going through the same experience. A few years ago, I had this friend with whom I shared both my pain and joy. We first met when I had gone to a party. And there, we exchanged contacts and got talking on the phone.

We were destined to be together

Luckily, we both aced our exams and finally got admitted into the same college months later. Because I've known her for quite some time, I found it a lot easier and more comfortable to roll and vibe with her than with any of my coursemates in school. She was admitted to study Biochemistry while I studied Nursing.

I confided in her

Despite our different schedules and departments, we found ways to make our friendship grow stronger with each passing day. This girl was literally my gossip, reading, and play partner all through our years in school. She knew almost everything about me.

Then I met him

Being a person who wasn't lucky with men and relationships, I went through a series of heartbreaks from my bad choices with men, and she was always there to console and comfort me. In my third year of the first semester, I miraculously met this guy who changed my perspective on how I felt and judged men. He was the opposite of all the men I have encountered in school. He was mature; he loved, cared, and showered me with lots of attention that made me feel like a princess.

She used to help us solve our disputes

As a very private person, I only introduced him to my friend, who eventually became our middleman in reconciling our differences whenever we had our little couple misunderstandings. And as such, she knew everything that went in and out of my relationship with him.

My heart was broken twice.

Finally, I got to my final year and was about to do my final exams when my boyfriend of two years suddenly sent me a text requesting to end our beautiful relationship. At first, I thought it was a prank, not until I tried reaching him through, but the message I got from him was so heartbreaking... He sent me a picture in bed with my friend, saying I was not worthy of him and that my friend was much better than me. As I tell the story, I am much better but then I was sad and angry. I did not eat or sleep well for a few days and isolated myself from other people. I honestly hated him and my now-former friend. I was not in a good place because, at that point, I felt hopeless. I felt stupid and cheated and couldn’t understand what I did to deserve that from two people that I loved.

I am enough

I leaned on the support of my family, who reminded me of the person I was before the betrayal and the potential I still held within. Through their patience, love and encouragement, I began to rebuild my shattered confidence, piece by piece. As I moved forward, I realized that the most important relationship I could ever cultivate was the one with myself. My self-worth is not determined by my other relationships, and sometimes, bad things just happen to people; you do not have to have done anything for a bad thing to happen. It took some time, but I feel so much better, and I want to let people know that it is okay because it gets better.