With midterms rolling around, the leaves changing, and sweatshirts coming out of our drawers… we are officially approaching the middle(ish) of the semester. Right now, I’m feeling as I always do when I’m away at school: time is going so fast, but I also feel like I have been here forever.
This semester has been full of changes for me: my first time living off campus, the most “normal” year most students have had so far, welcoming an entire new grade and the list goes on. I don’t know if it is just me, but I have felt busier this semester more than ever before in my college career! I love being involved on campus and joining every club I possibly can. College is only four years so it’s important to try everything at once, right? WRONG.
With an insanely busy schedule, adjusting to new changes, and a three-week-long retrograde going on, I felt my mental health decline a lot over these past few weeks. Part of this came from the stress of just constantly having somewhere to be all day every day. Another factor of this was getting used to being in an off-campus house.
Full disclosure, being in my own house makes me feel old and it’s SCARY. It is scary to think about how much time has passed, how fast college is going, and how old we are getting. One moment I was a senior in high school sad about her prom being cancelled, now I’m an upperclassman in college?? That was fast!
To better my mental health (and cure my existential crisis) I had to constantly tell myself that these feelings are NORMAL and VALID. Moving into your first house is a mega big girl moment and it can be extremely scary at first. However, after a few weeks I learned to enjoy this big girl era. I am only 20 and my whole life is still ahead of me. Each day I am learning to love coming into adulthood and figuring out how I want to live my life more and more!
I found a journal prompt that really helped me find the small moments amongst a chaotic schedule; the prompt is “Five Good Things That Happened Today”. This forced me to sit down each night, reflect on my day, and prioritize the good things that occurred. Not only did this put me in a good mood before going to bed (which I think is super important) but it also made me focus on what is most important. This is a skill I hope to carry throughout my life.
College is a chaotic, exhilarating, and stressful four years of your life. But it is also four years where you truly grow and learn so much about yourself- new hobbies or interests, how you interact with other people, what your career path should be, and so much more! Enjoy each and every second, it does go by very fast. However, sometimes it is CRUCIAL to stop and check in with yourself… your responsibilities can always wait an extra day.