Going into college, I had it all planned out: join a sorority, date a guy in a fraternity, and meet the people who would be my "best friends" for the rest of my life. Needless to say, I rushed my freshman year and found my "forever home". I got sucked into the wonderful world of Greek life and it was everything I thought it wasn't and more.
I'm not here to make you turn against Greek life, but to warn people that it's not what it's cracked up to be. Not only is Greek life almost as expensive as college itself, but it takes away from your academics. Most organizations require you to have a minimum GPA to be a member, but with as many events that you're required to go to or sucked into going to, it's difficult to maintain your grades with weekly meetings that can last up to three hours and mixers every week.
Greek life can also screw up your mental health drastically. From the stress of school, the feeling of having to attend every event, and wanting to fit in with my sisters, my depression and anxiety got to its worst. I felt like I needed to force myself into a stereotype I didn't agree with at all. I felt like I was living a double life. I hated everything that my sorority liked and I tried so hard to fit in that I acted like I enjoyed the same things, and it quickly became exhausting. My anxiety and depression got worse from this, and my grades slowly started slipping. I hated feeling like I wasn't good enough for the sorority and I stopped going to events other than chapter. I felt anxious before any mixers that we had, and ended up cancelling plans an hour or so before mixers.
By my sophomore year, it was time to add on to my branch and take a little of my own. I dreaded this because I was afraid of not being a good big, and it really took a toll on me. The girl I ended up taking as my little wasn't exactly who I thought and we ended up fighting a lot during the first half of sophomore year. It got worse once spring semester started, and we barely talked. She told people that I was a bad person and got people that I thought were my friends to stop talking to me. I felt very unwanted during chapter and other events. My anxiety was at an all time high. I couldn't go to chapter without wanting to cry or walk out halfway through. It was at this point that I had two options: drop my sorority or transfer to another school.s
I ended up transferring because even if I dropped, I would still see the same people all over campus and it would be the same things I was already dealing with. The two years I spent in the sorority were the worst two years of my life. I wasted so much time, money, and energy on people that don't really matter to me anymore and were so rude to me. I'm 100 times happier not dealing with the constant dread I felt when I was at events, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
