It’s been a long and intense first year in college. I’m almost surprised that I made it out the other end alive. Time has passed and I’ve learnt things the hard way.

I flunked out of my first three semesters on college. That story is for another time, but in short, I was not motivated in the slightest to be getting an education.

Last year I decided to look forward and put myself back in school. Life has pushed me to my limits. In eight months, I went through a disastrous breakup, made a trip to the hospital for mental health problems, tested a cocktail of drugs and became well acquainted with anxiety and depression.

I’ve learned about myself; my strengths and my weaknesses. I’ve made new friends, picked up new hobbies, and found my spirituality.

I’ve talked to a lot of students these past couple months. There are a surprising amount of people dealing with anxiety about school and their ability to perform well in college. I’m here to say, I’ve been there and I’ve done that. If you’ve flunked out of your classes before, don’t fall ill to the idea that you can’t do it. You can do it! It only requires for you to believe in yourself. Your honest effort is all you can give! And that is all it requires.

Very soon, I plan to write about my battle with anxiety and depression. It’s important. There are a lot of you dealing with this in silence. I’m here to say that you can overcome. It’s not easy. It requires work, and you’ll likely discover that there might not be a cure for you. But there is as treatment. The advice I can give now is to treat yourself well and be fair…

Till the next one…

Erik Hight