I wrote an article a year ago called “The Things I’ve Learned in College (So Far)” and looking back on it, Freshie Helena had NO idea what was coming her way for sophomore year in terms of life lessons. Nevertheless, here’s my yearly spiel of all the things I’ve learned in college … so far.
Medical Emergencies Happen
Whether or not you’ve avoided or frequented the emergency room or urgent care in your life, navigating the healthcare system can be tough when you’re on your own. While there’s no true way to fully avoid unpredictable emergencies, it can be helpful to have a few things in place in the event that you do have a medical emergency.
If you have an iPhone, you can put emergency contacts, allergies, medications, and any medical conditions into your Medical Profile on the Health app so that emergency medical services can contact your family/other important people from your phone in the event that you can’t do it yourself. Ask your parents to go over your insurance plan and coverage for things like doctor’s appointments, emergency services, prescriptions, and any other applicable uses. Some plans have an app that gives you a copy of your insurance card if you don’t have a physical one and reviews your coverage. The best part? Doing all of this will make you feel like a true adult!
Friends (unfortunately) are sometimes not friends
After having a drawn-out, dramatic, and frankly downright hurtful falling out with someone I thought to be a good friend, I came across a post on Instagram that said, “Life has taught me that you can’t control someone’s loyalty. No matter how good you are to them, doesn’t mean they’ll treat you the same. No matter how much they mean to you, doesn’t mean they’ll value you the same. Sometimes the people you love the most, turn out to be the people you can trust the least,” and it really stuck with me.
I’m not saying that you should go into every friendship expecting the worst, because that’s a miserable way to live life, but also be open to recognizing the fact that people are not always who they seem to be.
Don’t be afraid to take it easy
Obviously, college is hard. None of us would be here if we hadn’t worked our butts off to make it into a top-tier university. Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in all the opportunities that are available to us and overload our schedules on top of already hefty classes. Remember that it’s okay to take a step back and take a few things off your load, whether that’s the club you’re not really participating in or taking one less class during the quarter.