Kelenna A.
Photography by Shawn Bulloch
If you’re reading this, know that anything that can happen will happen – and that’s okay!
If you ask any of my family members or friends, they will all agree with me when they say I worry way, way too much. Whether it’s about an upcoming test, if I am studying enough, if I am studying too much. If it’s about if I spoke too much at dinner the other day or if I spend too much time alone. Am I doing the right thing right now? Am I worrying too much (yes!!) It is exhausting to constantly want to be in control of everything, but for a long time, and even now, it seemed like worrying was the only way I was able to stay on top of everything.
I have a migraine condition and during my freshman year in college, instead of taking care of my health and resting when I had a migraine attack, I just burrowed and worried more. In hindsight, this was probably what made my migraine even worse. Nowadays, instead of trying to outrun my migraine, I work with it. I don’t catastrophize, but I give myself time to rest, while still planning for the future when I am not in pain from my attack. I think this mindset really helped me and I try to apply it to other parts of my life too. The good and the bad will happen, it’s inevitable. Knowing this and knowing I can’t control it, allows me to look objectively and be active in my present. I can’t predict my next migraine, or a big setback. But I also couldn’t predict the life-changing time I had during my semester in South Korea, the friends I never thought I would be able to make. All of it happened whether I worried about it or not. So, if you’re reading this, know that it’s okay not to know! It will happen anyway.
Kelenna A., University of Georgia
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