It Was All Worth It

Every single struggle in the last 3 years was made completely worth it last night. I was brought to tears, very humbled, and extremely happy.

Here's the background. My friend Michelle knows just about everything and about a week and a half ago, she texted me telling me that there was a girl in the youth group that she's a core team member of who had revealed to Michelle that she was cutting herself. Michelle wasn't sure exactly what to do, so she asked me what she should say to her and told this girl about me. Michelle told her that she had a friend who struggled with cutting and that she should talk to me so she didn't feel so alone.

So, the other day, I got a friend request on Facebook from her. She started talking to me last night. She shared with me a little bit and I didn't push it, but then I asked her if I could ask some of the rough questions: where does she cut, what emotions is she feeling when she wants to cut, did something specific make her start, etc. She was kinda giving me reserved answers. Then, I shared part of my story with her and she started opening up. She revealed to me that she'd been cutting for a little over a month on her hip. She also told me that she felt very alone in this and she was relieved to hear that someone else knew what she was going through. Then she said this: "In all honesty, at Covecrest (a Catholic summer camp in Georgia), Michelle asked us to pray for you. She just said a friend who struggles with cutting. It made me decide to talk to her because I didn't think she would judge me because she already knew someone like me. So really you're the reason I told someone." I was brought to tears because EVERYTHING was made worth it. Her youth minister and parents know now, so she's taking the steps to get help. Telling people is probably the hardest step, so I'm really proud of her for having the courage to tell someone. Telling my parents has always been the hardest thing for me to do.

So, I'm helping her understand what's going on. I know it took me a while to understand a lot about my struggle. I praise God that she's been able to tell someone so early in her struggle because the longer it goes on, the worse it gets and the harder it is to stop.

She's been clean 8 days. I've been clean 20. We're both on the road to recovery and would really appreciate your prayers.