The summer of 2013 I was anxious, excited, but most of all nervous to begin my college career. I knew that the journey I was about to embark on would assert my adulthood and change the rest of my life. At first I had no clue where I wanted to attend college, but I knew I wanted to stay in Georgia but be as far away from home as possible. It came down to two options, Georgia State or Valdosta State. After some tough deliberation, I chose Valdosta because it was far enough from home but still in Georgia. I never knew that I would learn, grow and experience so much during college.
When I first got to college, I knew exactly what I wanted to do, or at least that’s what I thought. I came in as a nursing major making great grades with a 3.5 GPA. Everything was going so smoothly until life hit me. My relationship, friendships, family life, financial life, I mean anything you could think of came crashing down. I went into a very low point in my life. You know when things get super tough so you have those who cope by spiraling out of control? Well I did the complete opposite, I isolated myself. I stayed in my room for everything except going to class and eating. I never wanted to go out, I gained about 30+lbs, and I just went into a super numb state. The following year, I switched my major and coping mechanism. I changed to Biology because I thought it would interest me better, yet it was only harder and far more boring. By this point I began to party heavily, drink all of the time and make bad grades because I just stopped caring about school altogether.
It wasn’t until this past summer that I had a breakthrough. I decided I wasn’t going to let my past incidents shape me into this person that I knew I wasn’t. So finally, I changed my major to something I love, Psychology. I am still getting my nerdy science that I love while also tying in social, mental and global issues. As a black woman, it is taboo to speak on mental illnesses in the black community. I want to change that. I want to become a clinical psychologist and help those who suffer/suffered in silence with their illnesses and emotions. One day I hope to open my own mental clinic for low income families. My whole reason for doing this article is to shed some light to others who may be going through tough times. It does indeed get easier, and if you keep going with a positive attitude, you can get through anything that you put your mind to.
HCXO!