Rejection is part of the human condition. Whether you get rejected by the person you have a crush on or your group of friends continually flakes on plans with you, it hurts.

Whether you get rejected for a job after three rounds of interviews, or you posted something on Instagram and it only got two likes, the feeling of rejection can come in many different forms.

And no matter what, it’s always painful.

Here are five things to remember before getting in your feels next time it happens, though.

1. Rejection is universal and ALL people can relate.

2. Getting rejected doesn’t mean you aren’t valuable or lovable.

3. If rejection didn’t exist at some capacity, society would crumble. We can’t ALL be accepted at EVERYTHING.

4. You deserve to interact with folks who wouldn’t even consider rejecting you, you deserve to work at jobs that value you, and you deserve to feel wanted/worthy in your daily existence.

5. Rejection is ALWAYS redirection. And it often serves as divine protection/divine intervention.

These five reminders should hopefully soften the blow of rejection a little more, if the sting is still hurting you at this moment.

Another positive side note to think about? With pain and adversity comes growth and personal development if you’re open-minded enough to find silver linings.

On a personal note, my life has been a series of rejections recently.

My “friends” don’t show up for me the way I show up for them… like, ever. I often feel like I’m pouring love into my friends, but the sentiment is rarely every reciprocated.

Whether they’re flaking on plans last minute or refusing to press “like” on any of my Instagram posts, it’s all the same at this point.

As a professional writer, the last writing gig I had cut me from the team earlier this summer after sourcing out my position to AI.

My job search since then has been dry AF.

Fortunately, my husband takes care of our finances while I’m working to build my LoveTravelBeauty brand.

However, I still decided to set up multiple job interviews for myself, specifically with hopes of gaining the ability to help my husband out financially.

I clawed my way through a relentless job application process and landed FIVE interviews. Ultimately, I was ghosted by all five companies.

I applied to about 300 jobs based on my LinkedIn records, and the majority of the companies sent automated (and completely impersonal) rejection emails, or never acknowledged my applications at all.

I try not to take it personally, but after seven grueling years paying my dues in the editorial industry (and an English bachelor’s degree under my belt) it’s kind of difficult not to.

Worst of all is that my own body has seemingly been rejecting me as well.

I started a fitness journey with a girlfriend from my dance studio last month and we decided to cut carbs and sugar out of our diets.

On top of that, I was pounding the pavement with two hardcore workouts a day… but I ended up in urgent care a couple of weeks in!

My body didn’t react well to the rigor I was putting it through, which is quite frustrating.

The intense regimen led me to a splitting migraine, vertigo, eye floaters that made me think I was legitimately going blind… all before I nearly fainted in the middle of a crowd of people.

Since I deal with PCOS, I was intentionally going HARD with my fitness regimen to see weight loss results.

However, my drastic measures didn’t end well for me and the urgent care doctors told me I needed to dial it back.

It presently feels like my body is rejecting my most intense efforts to be healthy.

It’s demoralizing. It makes me feel defeated.

But I have to remember the five points I mentioned above before giving into the belief that I’m unworthy of the happiness I seek. We all do.

It’s f*cking hard. I get it more than most. But I’m working on finding silver linings wherever I can.

My flaky friends are giving me the opportunity to direct my love toward my husband and other family members.

All the job rejections have given more time to build LoveTravelBeauty as a profitable brand.

My body’s bad reaction to that aggressive regimen is forcing me to practice self-love and self-acceptance… just as I am right now.

It also encouraged me to seek out further medical insight — I have an upcoming bloodwork appointment on my calendar, which I otherwise likely wouldn’t have scheduled.

There are silver linings everywhere. Just gotta look for them. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comment section below.