Divorce In Your Twenties: What It's Like To Split At 28

"This Is Divorce At..." is a HuffPost Divorce series delving into divorce at every stage of life. Want to share your experience of divorcing at a certain age? Email us at divorce@huffingtonpost.com or tweet @HuffPost Divorce

Below, Joelle Caputa, a HuffPost blogger who wrote "Trash the Dress: Stories of Celebrating Divorce in your 20s," shares what it was like to divorce in her late twenties.

My 14-month marriage ended when I was 28 years old. It was simultaneously the most terrifying and exhilarating experience of my life. By the time I was 29 and the papers were signed, my embarrassment had turned to rejuvenation.

Twenty-something divorcées are like members of an underground society. You know young divorce exists, but you don’t realize how many people are in the same situation until it happens to you.

Women divorced in their 20s initially view themselves as failures because all their friends are getting married and having babies while they are starting their lives over from scratch. They feel like they let down their family who paid for the wedding, etc.

It’s so awkward explaining to potential love interests why you’re divorced at such a young age and even harder for divorcées with children. This demographic often feels like they’ll never find a man their age willing to deal with all their “baggage.”

[But] divorce is the end of life as you knew it, not your life as it was meant to be. The end of your marriage is a beautiful opportunity to get everything in life that you want and deserve. We were all blessed with a clean slate and are making the most of our lives. Women should pat themselves on the back for being courageous enough to embark on such a journey at young age, whether or not the divorce was their decision.