Charlotte S.
If you’re reading this, you have control over your own life.
I first faced depression in my junior year of high school. I hated myself and who I was becoming. I felt stuck in my environment and like there was no way up. My problem: I was scared of change. While change is scary and uncertain, it's even scarier to stay in place when you are unhappy.
I remember being terrified to tell my parents I was struggling because I did not want to burden them. I suffered in silence for months until one day I broke down to my mom. She turned to me and told me I needed to take control of my life.
After that year, I transferred to a new high school in a new environment with all new people. I was terrified, and I remember thinking, "What have I done?" But it didn’t take long before I began to form friendships that made me feel safe, seen, and heard.
If I hadn’t transferred schools, I would never have met my best friends or grown into the person I always wanted to be. I slowly started learning to say no to things that didn’t work for me. I had been a people pleaser for a long time, putting everyone's needs before my own. While sometimes it may feel like it, you are not a burden for advocating for your well-being.
Embracing change and taking control of your own life does not make you selfish. If you are scared of change or what people might think, that's normal, but do not let fear stop you from living your life! I am now abroad and having a once-in-a-lifetime experience, all because I took a leap of faith and embraced change. So take your leap. Its not anyone else's life to live but yours, and you only get to do it once. Change is scary, but being stuck is far scarier.
Charlotte S., Syracuse University
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