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 letters过的还好吗 轉眼
给三年后的自己 过的还好吗 有没有找到自己真正想要的生活 有没有遇见合适的人 三年前的今天 你正式分手了 没有以前那些不舍 感觉好像什么都没发生一样 不知道三年时间里会不会和好 不管怎么 都祝三年后的自己能幸福 如果还能快乐那就更好了
n5911
Nov 28, 2020 · Traveled 3 years
臭猪
嘿嘿，还记得我嘛，时间过去这么久了呢，记得你懵懵懂懂刚开始喜欢我的样子，连抱我一下都会那样呢，但是今天是我和你告别的日子，虽然没有毕业，但我很失望，我第一次这么用心喜欢一个男孩子，你让我受伤了，不怪你，怪我太傻，闹了很多次，大家都很不高兴，我以为你会像我一样，把你划进我的未来，但你没有，你说你想好好
n5961
Nov 28, 2020 · Traveled 1 day
Photo letter
希望吴枫先生打开看看
不知先生是否还记得我你的初恋苏汐茗这是小女子在2020写下的一封信也不知先生是否想念过我今天呐小女子将进入高考的考场这两年很努力只为了能与先生同一个城市我们于2020.04.26没有了故事不知先生是否遗憾呢我那时候吖还以为先生不爱我了使劲的作.其实先生那时候还是在乎的.但我并不知道其实还有一件事情瞒
星河
Nov 28, 2020 · Traveled 1 year 6 months
波波
宫崎骏曾经说过 当陪你的那个人 要下车时 即使你在不舍 你也要心存感激 挥手告别 没个人的故事 开头都是极具温柔的 但往往故事的结尾都配不上整个开头 记住 没一个意难平的结果 都是我们最好的结局。
n6009
Nov 29, 2020 · Traveled 4 days
Photo letter
两年后的自己，你好
哈喽，两年后的自己，你现在过得怎么样呢，你有心里最爱的人吗，还是，你已经变成一个海王了，又或者，还是条单身狗呢，现在和我在一起的女生，你应该还记得吧，现在是在她的宿舍给你写的信，你肯定不会忘记的，我们现在感情遇到了危机，我真的不知道该怎么办了，刚刚怂了那么久都没有鼓足勇气找她说句话，孬得很啊对不对，
n6018
Nov 29, 2020 · Traveled 2 years
钟慧
又是一年元旦，不知道你还在不在我身边，对不起啊，又惹你生气了，可能我真的一直很蠢吧，想逗你开心，结果每次都适得其反，其实我想表达的真的不是那些以前吖，我很笨，也不会好多东西，但是我真的有很努力的去学，我想回到我们最开心的那段时光，好像就是从那次争吵以后吧，我们直接就有了隔阂，无能为力的我却一直未能填
n6032
Nov 29, 2020 · Traveled 1 month 3 days
赵诗涵
今天是2020.11.30也是我的生日，和你哥一天，两年后，也就是今天，我们都要准备毕业了，很遗憾好了三年的我们就这样结束了，真的很遗憾那种，你说因为爱情不要把你忘了，我忘不了，真忘不了，这辈子都不可能，曾经那么甜蜜，好到极致，我一直放不下，跟你说放下了也是假的，直到现在都没有，一直都在想你，那些图
n6118
Nov 30, 2020 · Traveled 2 years
卢泫好啊
21年的冬天冷吗，月底来姨妈有肚子还是疼吗，有人在你身边了吗。这个我也不知道真的假的，不知道能不能送到你那边，不知道你会不会去看。现在是2020.11.30号，凌晨2:37分。还是很难过，睡不着的一天。我其实之前写过一封，定在了三年后，后面我觉得时间太久了，我等不到，世事无常，以目前这种状态来看，我
杨俊杰真帅
Nov 30, 2020 · Traveled 1 year
Photo letter
未来的雨
今天我们分手了！现在时间是20/12/1当你看到这封信的时候，时间已经过了一年了。不知这一年，你我是怎样度过的，现在的生活和工作是否还满意。遥想当时的我，痛苦不堪，至今是否走出了这段感情呢！你的目标完成了吗？这一年坚持健身了吗？现在有伴了吗？在今后的日子里，继续加油吧！刚把得 安锐
安锐
Dec 1, 2020 · Traveled 1 year
给一年后的你
你好，我是dyl。一年后的你会非常懵逼地收到这封来自一年前我写下的信。写这封信是因为昨晚的我太过失礼，说了很多莫名其妙的话。虽然我现在还是难过，但是清醒了很多。一年后的你过得好吗？开心吗？或许你已经有了孩子，希望你的小家庭幸幸福福的，你不要去伤害别人了！我也希望一年后的我现在已经结婚了，或许不会结婚
Cecilydyl
Dec 2, 2020 · Traveled 1 year
记录意难平时刻，一年后回头便不知是何种滋味
你好呀，不知道那时候的你看到这封信会是什么样的感觉，已经放下？已经成功，还是我最不希望看到的结果，还在纠缠，你还没有找到答案。可能到时候你已经记不清了吧，现在的滋味，意难平，难受，焦虑，不安，迷茫，需求，倾诉，爱啊，令我泪目。已经大三了，提升了多少，我想你一定会很高兴的，不错吧，我想一定是的，但是我
drw
Dec 8, 2020 · Traveled 1 year
黄小姐你过得好么？
你是不是很惊讶会收到这封信？为什么我还会打扰你的生活，但是请你浪费几分钟时间看完吧，也算是我最后拜托你的一件事了。 很抱歉这段时间对你的打扰，原谅我的出现对你生活造成了困扰，我很抱歉。原本我以为我们分手后已经一年过去了，怎样大家都释怀了，现实却是，无论是我还是你，好像大家都心里还有疙瘩，我以为能在部
Haven
Dec 18, 2020 · Traveled 2 years
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