Turning 20 was a turning point in my life that I thought I would never reach. I have always been a people pleaser, trying to fit in and always trying to fix problems with others even if that meant accepting a sad excuse of an apology. I wanted everything to be okay, to be at peace with everyone. I wanted people to like me because it feels good to be liked. Luckily I figured out that the only person I have to be at peace with is myself. I learned that I am okay with people being upset with me. I don't need everyone's respect and I don't need everyone's approval.

I won't apologize for making a lot of mistakes. I have never been a perfect person, but I learn from those mistakes and I'm becoming a better person because of them. I won't apologize for eating a lot of ice cream and I won't apologize for not meeting the standards of society's perfect body. I won't apologize for being too honest sometimes. I won't apologize for being passionate about mental disorder awareness and I won't apologize for making people uncomfortable by talking about those kind of important topics. I'm not sorry for being being me.

If you need a reminder I'm here to tell you to never apologize for being yourself. You can express your feelings, you can keep them hidden, you can party on the weekends or every day if that's your thing, or you can stay in and watch Netflix with your roommates. You can be as honest as you'd like, you can agree or disagree, and you can believe in things that other's might not. You are you and I think that's a wonderful thing that we have the option of being whoever we'd like to be. Do what makes you happy and don't apologize if what makes you happy isn't what other's had in mind for you. They aren't you, tell them to go live their own lives.

People are going to try to tell you that you're wrong and you should be like them. People are going to dislike you, people are going to talk badly about you. That shows their character, not yours. Society tries it's best to set standards for us, but I like to think that by being ourselves we exceed those expectations. By being you, you're more unique than the people who are trying oh so hard to be different than everyone else.

The last thing I want to leave you with is a quote from Ellen Degeneres. She said, "Follow your passion. Stay true to yourself. Never follow someone else's path unless you're in the woods and you're lost and you see a path. By all means, you should follow that."