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Step 1
Breathe. All you can do is survive this first and difficult day. Take one day at a time. Give yourself permission to mourn. Call in sick at work, sleep all day, eat too much ice cream, sob.
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Step 2
Congratulate yourself for being human: It is only when you open yourself to love that your heart can break. Develop and repeat a helpful mantra to get you through the initial shock and pain, such as "This too shall pass" or "I will survive."
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Step 3
Reach out to a close friend or family member. It helps to share your thoughts with others. Watch a movie to distract yourself. Choose a comedy that has cheered you up in the past. Or watch a movie that's guaranteed to make you sob--it may surprise you how good that feels.
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Step 1
Week 1: Force yourself to go out even if you are feeling despondent. Take yourself out for a cup of coffee or go on a long walk. Express your emotions in a way that comes naturally. Write in a journal, paint, sculpt or play music. Do daily cardiovascular exercise--the endorphins will give your spirits an immediate lift. Resist the urge to call your ex. Instead, write a letter. Don't mail it. Go out of town for the weekend to distance yourself from the temptation to call your ex. Visit an old friend or go back home to your roots. A change of environment does wonders for the spirit. Put everything that reminds you of your ex in a box and seal it. Throw it away, donate it to charity or ask a friend to hold on to it indefinitely.
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Step 2
Week 2: Surround yourself with friends. This may mean reaching out to people you fell out of touch with during the relationship. Make lists to help you regain your confidence and identity: a list of your friends, of things you like, of what you want to accomplish in the next decade. Spoil yourself: Get a new hairstyle, have a spa day or go shopping. Resist the urge to call your ex.
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Step 3
Week 3: Assess the experience. Have you learned anything about yourself? Does the experience make you more empathetic to others who've suffered a hardship? Begin an activity that will fill your time, distract your mind and rebuild your confidence. Train for a marathon, take up yoga or learn a new language. Resist the urge to call your ex. Volunteer your time at a local homeless shelter, soup kitchen or tutoring center. It will take your mind off your own woes and keep your suffering in perspective.
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Step 4
Week 4: Continue regular socializing and exercising. While socializing, though, make sure you don't depend on alcohol or drugs to dull the pain. Call your ex if you feel it would be helpful. Resist if you merely want to say hurtful things. Consider dating other people, but be wary of rebound relationships. Understand that you will need to experience and process sadness, anger, guilt and fear to fully heal. Burying or ignoring these emotions will thwart the healing process. Write, cry, share the feelings with friends.
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Step 1
Force yourself to go on dates. You'll be surprised to discover that your heart can still flutter over someone. It's part of the healing process.
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Step 2
Consult a psychiatrist if you are experiencing symptoms of depression, such as lack of appetite, insomnia or too much sleeping, low self-esteem, and an inability to concentrate or carry out routine tasks. Ask a friend or physician to recommend one who is experienced in treating depression.
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Step 3
Remember that healing is a process that takes time. Expect waves of sadness, anger, guilt or fear even after you think you are over it. Give your heart time to heal.
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Step 1
Compartmentalize the experience in your memory: "My heart was broken once. It really hurt and I'm glad it's over."
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Step 2
Reach out to your ex if you want to re-establish a friendship. Do not harbor secret ambitions of winning him or her back. You'll only set yourself up for another heartbreak.
Comments
judylove123 said
on 7/2/2009
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jeepdream said
on 6/27/2009 i met a man that had been in a 10 year relationship and for months i heard about how unhappy he was and that he never wanted to marry her and had lost his love for her. after about 4 months, we began sleeping together and we fell in love. he left her for me and guaranteed me that he clearly thought it out and wanted to be with me. he moved in and it was perfect. we talked about getting married and babies and i loved the way he loved me. i really thought he was the one from God and i felt bad for her but thought she would also find her "one" and that it would all work out. well, after about 6 weeks, she called him, her car broke down, he went to fix it and when he came home it was different. he said he is confused and he had to leave. he took everything and the next morning messaged me and told me that he loved me but his love for her was stronger. he promised he would never hurt me. ...
emperor1 said
on 6/16/2009 The hardest part is not being nostalgic for the good times. It's easy to look at the relationship afterwards through rose-tinted glasses and glorify the ex partner.
You have got to focus on their negative aspects and the reason the relationship ended. I wrote down all my the failings and bad things about my ex. Every time I started feeling nostalgic I read the bad things to remind myself that it wasn't all good.
Also you have got to completely ignore them. Ex partners will often still text you etc saying that they love you, but what they really want is just for you to tell them the same thing to fuel their ego. Once they hear it, they feel good and ignore you.
If you are not totally over someone and I mean totally, then don't try a friendship.
nils said
on 5/18/2009 I found that when I lost someone whom I considered the woman of my dreams, that there was much to do within myself to fill that hole. But, I still repeat to myself that if my heart hangs on to her, it will never be open to another. I try to fill myself so I am whole regardless of my partner, so that eventually a new partner who also is working to fill herself will be able to appreciate and understand. We will love not out of need to fill eachother's lacking but because of how we inspire and propel eachother forward. That's the hope that keeps me going, and makes the loss seem like it really was just meant to be, so I could learn to be full in myself.
lizzybaby87 said
on 5/13/2009 Was in a 3year relationship i tried to make things work one last chance but he rejected me =[ so now its been almost two months and im happy i admit i still think about him now n then but doing some of these excersises from eHow does help =] and i guess i realized that im a Whole lot of wOman lol and je just wasnt Man enough for me...