Many people wish that they could go back to tell their younger or less experienced selves helpful advice to aid them through the tough times. Like most, there are several things I wish I could say to myself during the first few months of college, but the ones listed here are among the most important ones that continue to plague my mind to this very day. Maybe others could learn from these, I don't know. All in all, I can say I've grown quite a lot since August of last year!

1. Actually text that one girl who wanted to keep in touch with you during orientation.

I was (and still am, to some extent) a very shy person when it came to meeting new people. So when this girl, same class as I was and temporary roommate for the night, gave me her cellphone number and asked to keep in touch, of course I nodded and said I would. I texted her my name along with my number, she did the same and when orientation ended, we parted ways.

Did we ever talk, or really even see each other again? No.

To this day, I still have her number saved in my contacts. I kind of wonder where and what she's doing now, but I feel like if I were to text her now, she probably wouldn't even remember me. Orientation was nearly a year ago. I wonder if we could've been closer friends, but alas, I won't ever know (for now, at least).

2. Be active in the clubs you joined. Don't let little excuses hold you back.

I joined about two to three different clubs within the first two months of my freshman year of college. Currently, I am active in none of them. I paid the dues, I have t-shirts, but in total, I've only been to one meeting for each and they were the "beginning of the year" meetings. Again, as mentioned before, I was a very shy individual so I got intimidated by the sheer number of members and kind of inched my way out of the crowd.

Then, when the clubs would announce that their next meeting or get-together was off campus, I knew this was my chance to make a perfect excuse. I don't have a car. My car was back home because I couldn't afford a permit, thus I couldn't possibly make it to the next meeting. So there.

It was only a few weeks later that I overheard another member (who also coincidentally didn't have her car with her) say that she was able to get someone to carpool her to events. Oh. Well, no matter. I was too shy to ask anyone for help, anyway.

I wish I had asked.

3. Be concerned about your own well-being sometimes.

My high school best friend was and still is my roommate. Now, this story doesn't end the way many like to say it will. You know, the whole "Oh, you guys are going to hate each other by the time the year is over!" spiel. In fact, it doesn't end at all. Personally, I think we're a lot closer than we were before college. We learned and even picked up some of each other's habits and grew increasingly comfortable around one another.

But at the same time, I think our closeness also happened to be something that kind of set us back when it came to exploring college life. Or at least, it may have set me back.

Neither of us are the "party-going" kind of people. We'd prefer to stay inside the dorm. We were almost always attached by the hip (or at least as far up as I could reach; she's tall, I'm not) and, as I look back on it now, I never really allowed myself to experience college alone. This isn't me saying that I wish she wasn't by my side. I honestly don't know where I'd be if she wasn't, but at the same time, would it really have been so bad to go alone?

I concerned myself so much about "what if she doesn't want to go," or "what if she hasn't done this yet," among many other repetitive questions that I completely forgot about myself. It's a great thing to be a caring and considerate friend, but when college rolls around, it's time to find out who you are. So it's okay to care a little more about yourself.

4. Stop bypassing great opportunities just because you think you "can't do it."

College is full of opportunities, each depending on what degree or career you're aiming towards. Internships, jobs, volunteer services, clubs... they're around every corner during almost every time of the year. You pick up flyers, put your email down, get some free t-shirts... and just leave it at that. Why? Because somewhere down the line you read the header "Must Be Able To" and abruptly scratched that opportunity off before you were even able to put it down.

Stop it. Silence that voice inside your head that makes you think that you are not good enough for certain things. You may not be experienced just yet, because hello, you're just a freshman, fresh out of high school. But that does not mean that you should think any less of yourself. Opportunities are not premade molds that you have to sculpt yourself into. Many opportunities are malleable; they find the people that can bring their company or business new life.

So call that number that you picked up, or if you're too shy, shoot them an email. Let them know you're interested, because you never know where that opportunity will land you later in life.

5. It's okay to be afraid of the future.

Things were simpler back then, when people could ask you what you wanted to be when you grew up and you were able to answer with whatever occupation came to mind. Things were easier back then, when watching professionals do their thing seemed like the coolest thing ever and you looked up in excitement and said "Daddy, I want to do that!" Things were less complicated back then, when you reached out and took your high school diploma and said to yourself, "Yes, this is who I will be soon."

Suddenly, in the midst of your first year in college, it's stressful, it's frustrating, and it's so scary to think that everything you've wanted since you were a child could be held even farther from your reach if you fail this next exam. Suddenly, you find your financial stability starting to crack and your personal life starting to collide with your academic life and solemnly you learn that this is what being an adult is like. And you break down again.

It's okay to cry every now and then. It's okay to be concerned about what life will bring. And it's okay to be stressed to the point of wanting to scream. And maybe you should scream! (Just don't wake up your entire dorm.) It's okay because one day, all of this torment will be worth it. If you aren't struggling during your academic career, then something is probably wrong here. These trials and tribulations that you go through create necessary growth that you'll need in the future.

So if you want to sit back, cry a little, and eat a few of those chocolates within arm's reach, go ahead. It's okay.

Just know that it's not the end. In reality, it's far from it.