For most people, college is a crucial time in their lives. It’s a time to discover who we are, what we want, and how to handle what the world throws at us. For some, this time may be easy. While none of us have it all figured out, some of us are lucky enough to be on the right path from beginning to end. For others, like myself, college is full of twists and turns and roadblocks on every corner.

At the beginning of my junior year, I still believed I was on track for my future. I had good grades, I knew where I wanted to go to grad school, and I was set for my future. That was when I got sick. Now, I’m not talking about a head cold or the flu, I was really sick. There were days when I couldn’t bring myself to get out of bed. Those days turned into weeks when I wouldn’t even leave my apartment to go to work. I felt like I was dying and like the world had just decided I was done.

Coming from the family I did, I knew when enough was enough and to go to the doctor. I was lucky and by December I was going to class again, although it wasn’t without its challenges. I was weaker than I had ever been before. A walk to class would leave me gasping for air and I couldn’t think straight anymore. My anxiety, which was already pretty bad before, was now debilitating and I was living in a constant state of fear that my whole world would come crashing down around me.

But I survived. I was scared and recovering slowly, but I was OK.

Throughout this experience, I had depleted almost all of my savings between doctor’s bills and the cost of medication and while I was using all of my energy to focus on getting better my grades had fallen significantly. I had been put on academic probation, I’d been forced to drop classes for fear of failing, and I was scared my GPA would never recover. I was a little over a year away from graduating and I felt like I was starting all over.

During the next semester, I thought a lot about my major, my career, and what I wanted out of my life. I thought about dropping out at least once a week, but with the encouragement from the people who love me, I stayed. I considered changing my major but knew I loved what I do and decided to tough it out. My spirit had been beaten down, but because of this, I learned what I was made of. While getting sick challenged me mentally and physically, it showed me how strong I am. And while I’m still struggling to recover academically I learned that with a little motivation and determination you can overcome anything... even college.