The breaking point

At sixteen, I felt the weight of everything — the constant bullying, the abuse, the lack of understanding at home — as an unbearable pressure that nearly crushed me.
Each day felt heavier than the last, every smile felt empty, and every night seemed endless.
I was on the verge of collapsing under the weight of my own existence. That year, I made my first suicide attempt.

I truly believed that the only way to end the pain was to end my life.
Everything felt hopeless; it seemed like no one would ever understand my struggle, and there was no way out of this dark tunnel.
My thoughts were filled with despair, and I felt trapped in a world where suffering was the only constant.

And yet, that attempt failed.
In hindsight, that failure became an unexpected turning point in my life.
It was as if the universe — or something deep within myself — gave me a quiet message:
“There may still be a reason you’re here.”
Maybe, just maybe, there was still hope.
Maybe I had the strength to keep going, even if it felt impossible.

The realization didn’t come all at once; the pain didn’t vanish, and my circumstances didn’t change overnight.
But slowly, something began to shift. I started to see that giving up wasn’t the only option.
That despite everything I had been through, a glimmer of light was still possible.
An inner voice whispered that my life — however broken — could still have meaning.

In the weeks and months that followed, I learned to recognize small moments of hope.
A friend’s smile, a small accomplishment, a moment of recognition — these tiny sparks slowly began to form a foundation of resilience.
I began to understand that surviving isn’t a weakness, but a quiet strength that grows in the darkness.

This turning point marked the beginning of a long, difficult journey toward healing and self-discovery.
It was the moment I realized that my past, however painful, didn’t have to define my future.
That I could rewrite my own story — piece by piece — and eventually become someone who was no longer a victim, but stronger, more resilient, and aware of their own worth.

That turning point taught me something fundamental:
Even in the deepest darkness, there is a spark of hope.
And sometimes, it’s in those very moments of despair that we discover the strength that allows us to stand and move forward.