Holly Riordan

You should be wise enough to recognize when you’re struggling, to ask for help when you need it, to reach out for a helping hand.

They should never leave you wondering whether they care, whether they’re paying attention, whether they’re excited to come home to you.

If you want an excuse to remain in the exact same place, then you’re going to find it. You can always come up with more reasons why you shouldn’t take the risk you’ve been dreaming about every night and day. There’s always going to be some sort of obstacle in your way, warning you it’s too hard to make a change.

You never know what someone is going through behind closed doors, not even your closest friends, so make sure you treat them with as much kindness as you can carry. 

You have to listen to your heart over your history.

Almost relationships aren’t fair to you because you deserve consistency.

It will give you the chance to focus on your own wants, needs, and priorities.

You are too busy worrying about your friends and family to worry about yourself.

You don’t have to tear all your walls down and wear your heart on your sleeve. You can still be cautious about who you let into your heart. You can still get to know someone before deciding whether they deserve access to your thoughts. You are allowed to be picky about who you love. Just don’t swear off love completely.

It’s okay for you to decide you only want to surround yourself with people who will take your emotions seriously and distance yourself from the people who make you feel bad about having a heart.

My anxiety makes it hard to build new relationships because my guard is up too high for me to see clearly. 

If your person isn’t interested in helping you through your lowest points, then they don’t deserve you during your highest points. 

They are going to try their hardest to destroy your self-esteem so you lose the energy to fight, so you forget about walking away. 

If someone cannot handle your love, they don’t deserve your love.

No, you can’t fix whatever is wrong, you can’t solve the problem for them — but you can be their shoulder to cry on. You can be there to listen while they rant. You can remind them that no matter what happens you’re going to be standing by their side. 

Maybe you’re successful in ways that are much harder to measure.

You shouldn’t put effort into someone who refuses to put in effort of their own.

Your instinct might be to protect your heart and keep your guard high, but you can’t stay closed off forever.