Hi Angel,
I've had many times when I've felt things take too long to change. I realised that dwelling on my past is not the way to move forward. The only way my life has changed is because I have made it, I had to face up to the past, accept it, put it behind me and move on. Life doesn't change without you making the effort, some things may be terribly hard but if you persevere you will get there. I think you know your ex is no good for you. Make a life plan of where you would like to be in 5 years, what job you would like, relationship status, friends etc. Then sit down and plan out the smaller steps of how you are going to acheive those goals. Good luck xx