It was difficult for me to live in a four-person apartment. I stopped taking my daily prescription of Zoloft and slowly began to slip into an anxiety-riddled depression. Although I hid it from others well mostly due to the fact that I despise those whom whine almost to the point of boasting about their unhappiness, it didn’t blossom into its full existence until I began to feel isolated from the very friendships I had started to make.
Deadlines were missed, grades slipped and I spent many hours walking the trails on-campus by myself due to the fact that my apartment, the only place where I should have been able to escape and reflect, was occupied by three others.
As with every facet of life, this frustrating window of time was not without its positives. I had the opportunity to meet someone that I had looked up to almost my entire adolescent life.
They inspired me to re-evaluate who I was, where I was going and why I was there. They told me exactly what I have heard many others say before as well: “I believe in you.”
It’s a fascinating prospect to think that four words could hold so much thought-determining power. Thus, as that person suggested, I took a step back and re-examined my priorities.
From that point on, I grew a lot as an individual. I regained my grasp on reality, my ideals and my sanity.
Over the summer I reorganized my majors and minors; I realized that at USI, I could start movements. I could change things. I could be a leader. This is something that would be many times more difficult if I had transferred to a larger, older university such as Ball State or Indiana University.
I am now proud to say that I am an active member of various clubs and organizations and am creating my own. Of course, it does help that I now reside in a two-person, two-bedroom apartment with a friend of mine whom I already know and trust, but I feel that it really was these things that made a difference in the quality of my experiences at USI.
I am thankful I that I remained here in Evansville and now have the opportunity to leave my mark on a growing university. I am here to get involved and I am to stay.