When I arrived on campus as a first year on September 2nd, I was so overwhelmed with joy and excitement I almost forgot to say goodbye to my parents. I was on this beautiful new campus, and had already made a friend group that I knew would last forever. This place known as Wartburg, was simply incredible.

When I came to Wartburg for my orientation day, I declared myself a double major in Spanish and Music Therapy and also decided to accept a spot in the Scholars Program. I was nervous, but I had always been busy and ready for a large workload. I honestly did not think my busy schedule would change much from high school to college.

I was wrong.

It was on the last day of orientation that I decided I did not have time for the Scholars Program. After music major meetings that explained how large of a commitment my music therapy major was, I panicked. I thought to myself "How am I ever supposed to balance all of this?". Thus, I departed from the Scholars Program with a heavy heart.

I felt better about my schedule after leaving Scholars, but I still was having a hard time coping once classes started. I have three years of Spanish from high school, and one year of college credit for the language. I am telling you right now, that is not enough time with the language to be placed in Intermediate Spanish. My head was once again, exploding.

With another heavy heart, I dropped my Spanish major for a while, to become acclimated to the college experience. Having so much love for the language, deciding to focus on one major for the time being was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make.

On top of finally organizing my academic schedule, I needed a job. I decided to stick with something I know and apply to be a lifeguard. Needless to say, I was stressing again, about whether or not I had time to really commit to working a job. After a lot of thought (mostly about affording college), I decided to work one early morning a week until I feel comfortable with my schedule.

But wait, there's more.

One of the biggest reasons I chose to attend Wartburg College, was not only for the music therapy program, but for the choir. Wartburg Choir, specifically. I rehearsed a solo for three weeks before moving in and killed my audition. Then, I made callbacks. I was incredibly happy and felt on top of the world. The day the list was posted for Wartburg Choir, was brutal. I ran to the list with a smile on my face, and left in tears. I had not made it in. I was given a spot in Castle Singers (the other auditioned choir on campus), and was at first, less than grateful. Soon I realized, that God was giving me a sign to take the opportunity to focus my voice in the chamber ensemble, Ritterchor (the men's choir), and to take the time to focus on my voice as an individual.

Still not quite done..

in my opinion, I am one of the most sensitive beings on the planet. Throughout all of this, my anxiety (which I thought I managed very well) was spiraling out of control. Everyone on campus now knows me as the "Everything is fine!" kid, even though it normally was not fine. I was not able to eat or sleep like I should be able to, and I found myself worrying myself into a panicked state over assignments and readings in which I had plenty of time to finish, so I made yet another very difficult decision.

I shamefully walked to the Pathways center, and spoke with a counselor about setting up counseling sessions to keep my anxiety in check. I cried about going there because I felt broken, but after a long, emotional conversation with a counselor, I realized I was not alone and sometimes people just need a little help.

It has been an interesting month during my first year of college, but I think I am actually getting the hang of it.

If there is any advice I could give, it would be to take a deep breath and take on college one task at a time. College is NOT easy, but what is most important, is to stay calm and never let yourself become too overwhelmed.