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.
How to write this letter
- 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
733 public letters给24岁的你
七年前的我给你写了这封信，你应该有个家庭，有了稳定的工作，或许你处在人生的低谷，或许昨天才跟妻子吵了架，但是你要记住，身为一个男人，你要大度，你有责任照顾好家庭，上班累了就想想孩子，妻子，家人，那都是你的动力，总之，你要幸福的生活。好了现在去给你的妻子一个拥抱，给宝宝一个吻，记住
n6334
2021.01.02
写给一个月后的自己
我是4月7日的段宇。昨天刚跟王向辉分手。现在在考研的旅途上还是有迷途。我不知道未来的你会怎么样。现在的我，很缺钱，没敢告诉爸妈。《鲨鱼记账》app里的账单很清晰。现在只剩3000多块钱了。想去找兼职工作，又想好好学习（自己又不好好学习）我现在的计划是，4月考科目二，5月考科目三希
dy2015678
2018.04.07
＜第52天＞
和我妈吵架了 一个人跑了出来这是不成熟吗 我就是想出来哭一哭啊 当我妈面哭岂不是很没有出息 可我真的想哭诶 憋不住了 我真的挺爱他们的 我也知道他们爱我 但是有时候怎么就要暴躁 发脾气呢 外面真冷 15度 钱包带了 耳机带了 失策的是没穿厚“妈妈，我居然爱上了他，哎....”生日
一只不咬人的文子
2017.10.07
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
半个乐天派Agony
2013.04.18
亲启
当你看到这封邮件的时候，已经过去接近一年了，如果你已经成功了，请记得最开始的一切，如果你还没有成功或者还在半途，你一定要相信你自己，千万不要放弃，因为，你的身后还有其他人在等着你成功归来的那一天。要记得，你身后还有人在支持你，千万千万不要放弃。你一定会成功的。就算不为了谁，也一定
n5074
2020.07.05
亲启
当你看到这封邮件的时候，已经过去接近一年了，如果你已经成功了，请记得最开始的一切，如果你还没有成功或者还在半途，你一定要相信你自己，千万不要放弃，因为，你的身后还有其他人在等着你成功归来的那一天。要记得，你身后还有人在支持你，千万千万不要放弃。你一定会成功的。就算不为了谁，也一定
n5074
2020.07.05
来自2020年的我
亲爱的美丽的元元今天是你分手的第42天，八月了，你今年经历了恋爱，分别，朋友可能要回家了，马上要回家做手术，觉得这一年太糟糕了，身边的人都在告诉你，他不好，他配不上你，我希望明年的我会忘了他，提起他时候也笑笑而已，希望明年的我能遇到珍惜我的那一个人，我真的太痛苦了，真的希望一年年
n5184
2020.08.10
你是否找回了自己？
亲爱的Ruby，此刻的你是否找回了自己？你要的纯粹已经支离破碎土崩瓦解了，你是否还能重塑你的内心？你还能看到美吗？还能善良吗？还愿意毫无保留的信任吗？或许太难了，但我希望此时的你能拾回你的自信，能决心开始正常的生活，愿意放过过去放过自己。希望此刻的你有了更大的目标，决心做更好的自
n3053
2018.04.25
欧阳琪666
哈哈哈，懵逼吧，我猜这个时候我们应该已经分开了吧，算算时间这时候我应该在国外了吧，写这封信，没有什么目的，就是在想，三年后，我们应该已经各奔东西了吧，遇见你真的很开心，我的抑郁症恢复的很快，我有很多缺点，我很爱生气，但我会改的，可惜我的家庭不允许我有自己的人生，希望你有更好的结果
n5615
2020.11.28
一年了，困惑解开了没
列个清单吧，一年差不多也够了对于工作，你现在不想在这待着，还在混着，一年后你在哪，还在这里吗，爬上去了没，现在是真不知道如果不在这边，一年后会在哪现在你疯狂喜欢皓月，一年后呢，还单身吗，还是又换了目标继续玩着疫情结束了吗，电影院开了没钱还了多少了，现在还差十二三个。吊电脑打字打着
HZJ
2020.07.06
你还好吗？
两年后的我，你现在过得好吗？现在的我很糟糕，工作没找到，被迫考研，却一天天静不下心学习，对未来一片茫然。总是会对某些事物产生三分钟的冲动，然后被困难给绊住脚步。我很担心之后会更糟糕。如果你过得还好，全然跨过了这段糟糕的旅途的话，那请相信自己吧，一切你想做的一定能实现的！因为连这糟
存在
2021.08.17
霍小宝
今天收到两年前寄给自己的信啦很开心因为明年的生活还是个未知数所以只寄了一年的呢这一年你还快乐吗烦恼是不是还是很多情绪稳定追求发展好好对待爸妈好好对待朋友和爱人从小事开始做事最重要的是爱自己永远都能有再站起来的力量张雪凝说，一切都会好的私心不敢写杜杜怕并没有好结果让你难过人生还长，
霍小宝
2018.12.27
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