The Katie Series: Thoughts On How To Get Over A Break Up.

(Cheesy applicable photo.)

And The Katie Series continues... Katie threw this out as a blog topic and I thought, "Yikes, I don't want to touch that." I broke up with a guy I was dating back in February and if we're being honest, I'm still struggling to be completely over things. So what I've decided to do is make a list of all of the things that I'm doing and tell you to do the opposite. Kidding, kidding... But the truth is, I haven't arrived, I'm a work in progress, and I struggle daily. Here are just a few things that I have learned:

The Katie Series: Thoughts On How To Get Over A Break Up

1. Cut ties - if possible. You think you can be friends with the person... but you can't. It's too hard. And it probably isn't healthy, at least for now.

2. Control your thought life. That sounds a little more scandalous than I mean (but it's good to control your thought life if it's scandalous, too.) Don't let your brain go down paths you don't need to be going down. "Remember that one time he said that sweet thing..." "Remember our first kiss..." "Remember when we laughed til we cried about..." It's not healthy. The hard part is that no one knows your thoughts except for you and God, so you don't have any accountability. So you need to pray for self-control and stop when you find yourself failing.

3. Give yourself some grace. You may be discouraged because it's taking you longer than you think it should to get over things. Give yourself some grace - it's going to take some time, and that's ok.

4. Don't trash talk your ex during the process. It may seem like it makes things easier, but you're just avoiding the root issue. The truth is - there are a lot of good things about your ex, that's what drew you to them in the first place. Don't put them down, especially not to others, just so you can cope.

5. Don't rush into another relationship. It won't be good for you and it for sure won't be good for the next person you date if you rush into things before you're ready for a new relationship. Give it time. Be cool with yourself before you put that junk on someone else.

6. Give it to God. Sometimes the last thing you want to hear is "God has a plan for you." But it's actually the the truth. Remember that and give it all to Him.

That's all I've got for now. Like I said.. I'm totally and completely a work in progress on this stuff. But if I can practice what I preach, I think that things will get easier every day.