I recently had to switch dorm rooms here at the University of Oklahoma. I will not go into great detail of what happened, as it isn't fair to the other people who were involved; but I was put into a situation which did not benefit me mentally. I have struggled with my mental health throughout my teenage years, but I have recently (in the last year or so) really fought to strengthen it.
Whether it be how I view myself or how I deal with other people's negativity, my tasks everyday go towards helping me have a stronger mental health than the day before.
The event that took place which forced me to switch dorm rooms was a classic act of bullying/harassment. I have dealt with bullies in the past, so I made sure to put myself first in my decision making that followed the incident. Some of the people on the floor decided to get a pet that wasn't allowed by campus rules, and I decided to let my resident advisor (RA) know what was happening. While nobody knew it was me besides myself and my RA, one of my suitemates assumed it was me because she overheard a conversation I had with my friend about the situation. Following this, she decided to tell her roommate and the other people involved in caring for the banned pet. One of the guys decided to slip a not-so-nice note under my door, basically thanking me for allowing the pet to be removed with a lovely little graphic of human anatomy (as if I wasn't aware of what anything looked like).
This act pretty pushed me over the edge, as I wasn't having a great day mentally as is. I messaged my RA immediately, not going into detail about what happened but simply asking if it was too late to switch rooms. She let me know everything, and she was very helpful throughout the whole process. I explained what happened to her, and she held a floor meeting to get to the bottom of who was involved. After we found out, one of my suitemates came to apologize to me and let me know who else was involved. While the other two never bothered to apologize, I know that I didn't need an apology as I have already forgiven them all.
While I have forgiven them, I will never forget what they did.
After it was all figured out, I decided that the next healthy step for me was to move out that following weekend. Now, many people looking from the outside may think I am over reacting, but without knowing how hard I have struggled with depression and anxiety, they can't truly have a fair opinion. For me to continue to "thrive" in college and be healthy mentally, this was the next logical step. I have been in my new dorm room on a new floor for only a couple of days, but I can already feel a huge difference, in both my attitude towards everyday things and the environment I'm living in.
Whatever situation you are in that you don't feel is benefiting your mental, physical, or spiritual health, I strongly urge you to remove yourself from it.
By doing this, I just feel so much better; it's hard to put it into words. Whether it be a job you are in, a class you are taking, a relationship, or a living situation (and millions of other scenarios), do your best to just take a step back and truly analyze it. See if it's offering you any benefits. See if you are thriving like you want to. See if you are living healthy in accordance to how you want.
