The transition from high school to college can be extremely rough for some people. For others the transition is smooth. Adjusting to college for most people is very difficult including me. For some, college is their escape but for most people, leaving home is that hardest thing they've ever done. Meeting new people can be easy for some but extremely hard for others. It's easy to just say, "I'm gonna start over and just be myself," but in reality, it's sometimes hard to move on from the past.
Last summer, as reality started to set in that I was leaving for college, I thought about all the wonderful people I was leaving. At home, I have such an amazing group of friends that care for me and know me more than I know myself. I not only have an amazing group of friends but an amazing family that loves and cares for me so much. Having to leave this was very difficult and being away from them now is still just as hard. I knew that when I chose the University of Wisconsin-Madison, it would be extremely difficult being so far away from home in New York. In the beginning, it was hard not knowing anyone and going from seeing my friends and family every day to being by myself almost all the time.
I would like to say that I've completely adjusted to college and have no problems with being homesick, but I would just be lying. I find that in college, I am spending a lot more time with myself than I would ever imagine. For me, going from being with other people all the time to being myself most of the time was hard and still is at times. It has definitely gotten better and I have learned that being by yourself is totally ok. It is hard because you start to think about a lot of things and it can get overwhelming but that's normal. It is difficult to find that balance where you aren't getting frustrated or upset about being by yourself.
Getting coffee, watching a movie, getting food, doing homework, walking to class; these are all things that you will find yourself doing alone often at college and after college as well. It is a weird feeling to be doing a lot by yourself but I can tell you this, no one is looking at you thinking, "wow she's by herself, she's a loser," because truth is, they probably spend a lot of time by themselves as well. Sometimes we all need a little alone time and we need to step away from friends and classes and relax!
