Coming into college I was lost. Other than my passion in life, clinical psychology, I didn't know what I wanted to do. I was scared of what I was getting myself into when I was coming to Dalton State College and of all the new faces I would be seeing. I did not know what to expect moving to a new town and moving into an apartment with three girls that I didn't know . . . I was terrified—petrified that I would not be good enough for the other people of this college. I knew I had to be strong for my family and for myself.

Before my high school graduation, I broke up with a guy with whom I thought I would spend the rest of my life with. It broke my heart to be moving to a new place, and not having my best friend by my side to help me with the struggles I was about to encounter. After graduation, I was still heart broken and upset about my ex and I, but I was determined to have the best summer of my life. I got offered a job working with my mom for the summer so I wouldn't be the typical “broke” college student. While working with my mom over the summer, our relationship grew and we got closer.

Those two and a half months passed by faster than I could have ever imagined. Before I knew it, move in day was approaching . . . I was more terrified than I had ever been. Then reality hit me—I was about to move out of my house, leave my dad, mom, sisters, my somewhat new dog, and all the friends I had made over the past four years in high school. Many people may be ready to move out and get away from their family, but for me, I wasn’t really that ready because of everything that had happened to me within the past couple of months. My boyfriend and I had just broken up, my best friend and I weren’t talking and my mom became my best friend.

I knew I had to suck it up and accept the changes that were coming my way. Don’t get me wrong, I was excited for college, but I didn’t want to leave the life I had behind. I did not want my past to affect how I approached my present. I needed to realize what had happened to me was not the end and that everything would be OK.

I know a lot of students may struggle with something like my situation. Your situation may be worse than mine, but always know that you are a strong individual and you can get through anything as long as you put your mind to it. When I moved to Dalton, I was a mess. I thought I could start over and it would be easy. Well, I was wrong. I made more mistakes because guess what, I am not perfect. No one’s perfect and that is perfectly fine. As I am finishing out my first year here, I am still struggling with things that God throws at me here and there. This is all just a part of life, but I know in the end everything that I go through is going to make me a stronger individual!