When It Hurts, Write to the You Who Made It Through
Some kinds of pain are hard to hand to anyone. Telling friends feels like being a burden; telling family means making them worry; posting it online is too exposed. So it stays lodged in your chest, replaying at 2 a.m., getting heavier each time. Writing it down is one of the most consistently proven ways to loosen that knot — and writing it to your future self adds something more: a quiet assumption, built right into the envelope, that a day will come when you're out the other side, calm enough to read this. People have written here on the night of a breakup, in the week they were laid off, from a hospital bed, and after losing someone they couldn't imagine losing. Most of these letters were sealed in tears. But opened a year later, nearly all of them say the same thing back: you made it through. Below are letters their writers chose to make public — because they wanted whoever is hurting right now to know this road has been walked before, all the way to the other end.
Ideas to get you started
- Don't compose — pour. The hurt, the anger, the fear, exactly as they are. This letter has no other reader; it doesn't need to be presentable.
- Write down what actually happened. The pain will fade, but what you went through deserves to be remembered truthfully.
- Give future-you one small, gentle assignment: eat at that hotpot place for me. Get a full night's sleep for me.
- If someone is being kind to you right now, put them in the letter. When you're through this, remember to thank them.
Real letters from the vault
615 public letters나에게 쓰는 편지-제2화*This is life.*
안녕.한주간 무엇을 했지?변한 모습으로 짠 하고 나타날려 했는데...그대로네.그건...얼마전 조류독감 비상사태가 터졌을때 하필이면 감기 걸려서...몸조리 하느라 아무것도 못했지...라고 변명하고싶지는 않다...... ...이젠 이런 위로같지 않은 위로도 많이 안할련다.
meinaSH
Apr 9, 2013 · Traveled 7 days
4月11日
我想让你像刚开始那样爱我，每天睁开眼睛就能收到你的短信，上班可以抽时间跟你聊天。偶尔收到你送的礼物，让我惊喜。而现在的你即使整天在线也看不到你的头像哪怕偶尔跳动一下。曾经为我做的一切如今是不是重复的为别人而做呢？是我太贪心了吗？还是你变了。 如果想拥有一个人那就放他走，他诺能回来那必定属于你。真的是
xue影諪子
Apr 11, 2013 · Traveled 20 days
你回头的时候我会是怎样对待 我不知道
我不知道发生了什么 至今不知道呵呵 听起来好难过的感觉 但是也许都不重要了吧我拿回了会让我们继续有联系的东西 我努力地去拿回来了也许从我拿到的那一刻开始 我们的关系就这样淡掉了吧 她们说既然都这样了 当你回头的时候叫我不要再有什么继续的想法了 其实听到这样的话 我不知道怎么回答 我真的不知道自己会不
玻璃球
Apr 15, 2013 · Traveled 2 months
我正在错误的方向越走越远
今天，自己又输了很多。输的越多越想捞回来，这是赌博让人陷得越来越深的原因，而我在这条不归路上越走越远，一个月后看看自己到底会怎么样，每个月两百。 只有两百的火车票我没有钱买 多可悲啊 自己的学习状态也非常不好 每天的计划都完不成 拖沓 玩 只能用自己的大量时间 每次学习的状态都非常差 自己当初的梦想
朱大傻
Apr 15, 2013 · Traveled 1 month
今天我很难过
我写下对不起让你们失望了。郑欣怡回了句没关系。要是大家都这么说就好了。我很不开心。我什么都不会，不会社交不会篮球。今天看到太多死亡的事。虽然天天都有死亡，但恰恰就在今天，我瞧见那么多死亡都上了头版头条。大学里又有谋杀同学的事。人际关系正在复杂化。我害怕。排球本打得好好的突然又不会打了。我也害怕。我不
车旅蚁穴
Apr 17, 2013 · Traveled 2 months
现在的你好了吗？
事情已经过去三个半月了，你应该好很多了吧，你会像刚开始那样吗？你说过要考公务员，你要要好好努力！事业才是你的一切，你已经失去了很多了，只要你拥有好事业，你就能挽回曾经的你，忘了她，她不会是你的，有更好在等你，加油！加油！你还有家人。
ZWH1011
Apr 17, 2013 · Traveled 3 months
熬过去了吗，
魏源，你还好吗你还难过吗。应该熬过去了吧，要知道你一直都是一个很坚强的女生。这段时间是不是感觉糟透了，是不是觉得世界都要崩溃了。刘泽林这三个字还会让你患得患失吗，你还会一个人偷偷的哭吗。勇敢点吧，没有什么熬不过去的。时间会沉淀所有的，对吧。当你看到这封信的时候，时间会告诉你答案的。
半个乐天派Agony
Apr 18, 2013 · Traveled 3 months
Photo letter
写给未来的自己
未来的你:你好吗,,今天有幸能有一个机会写信给你,跟你发发牢骚,说说现在的我吧,最近的我感觉很无力,曾经信誓旦旦的说,要过自己想要的生活,却发现事实并不如我想象的那般简单,最终不得不向现实妥协,但我想一切都是短暂的,最终我还是会过我想过的生活做我想做的事.不知道现在的你是否已行进在那理想的彼岸的途中
Zjiay7
Apr 19, 2013 · Traveled 1 year
Photo letter
写给过去的我们
致我过去的一封信你叫田雨 我叫郑薇。两年的感情在四个月之前结束了还记得我们才开始在一起时 所有人羡慕我们的感情不管怎么样我们还是会和好 每次吵架朋友都有来劝哭了之后很多朋友跟着哭了，在这里我写下但是我不想再一一回忆 分手四个月之后你重新恋爱而我却在原地逗留 等你 曾经背负那么多压力选择与你重新开始结
田JJ这个名字你还记得吗
Apr 19, 2013 · Traveled 7 days
Photo letter
一年前的现在，你很迷茫
高中的时候，你喜欢抑制自己的感情，你不敢谈恋爱，不敢做一些影响学习的事情，但是后来你才明白，其实有没有谈恋爱，跟学习是没有很大关联的。大学之后，你认识了几个有好感的男生，第一个是军训的时候认识的，你很羞涩，羞涩到几乎是做作的程度，后来你把自己扼杀在摇篮里了。第二个是在足协认识的，后来你知道他有女朋友
223
Apr 19, 2013 · Traveled 1 year
Photo letter
Simple life
生活不可能像你想象得那么好，但也不会像你想象得那么糟。我觉得人的脆弱和坚强都超乎自己的想象。有时，我可能脆弱得一句话就泪流满面，有时，也发现自己咬着牙走了很长的路。
Simple
Apr 20, 2013 · Traveled 7 days
Photo letter
夏季过后
时间一天一天过去了，大二第二学期结束，可是自己所学的知识远远与消逝的时间不成比例，曾经的梦想都沧桑了吗，决定是要把一切都埋没在尘土之中了吗，不再有当年的意气风发了吗？······苦水再也没有尝过了，得过且过是一天，这就是我所追求的人生？单色调的的生活已经毫无意义。一个世界一个梦想，双手还能创造？要等
一线晴天
Apr 20, 2013 · Traveled 2 months 20 days
Frequently Asked Questions
Will anyone else be able to read this?
No. Letters are private by default — only you, on delivery day, can open it. Going public is entirely your choice; every letter on this page was shared deliberately by its writer.
Does writing it down actually help?
Expressive writing has a substantial body of psychology research behind it. Many users describe the moment they hit "seal" as physically handing over part of the weight.
What if, a year from now, I don't want to be reminded?
All that arrives is a notification — whether you open the letter, and when, is up to you. For what it's worth, most people report reading theirs with a smile.
What if things feel really serious right now?
A letter can keep you company, but it's no substitute for professional help. If what you're feeling is affecting your daily life, please reach out to a counselor or a mental health helpline where you live.
When It Hurts, Write to the You Who Made It Through
Write yours