"Navigating the Beginning of College" by Alexa Hall
I recently started college at Drake University, and I am currently sitting in my freshman dorm room while writing this. Over the summer before moving in, I started to get really anxious about moving two hours away from my family. I counted down the days that I had left with my high school friends. Most of us were going out of state: one moved to Arizona, another to South Dakota, and another to Kansas, while the rest stayed in Nebraska. I had the same group of friends from middle school to graduation, so I already knew that it was going to be a difficult adjustment for me socially. Not to mention every difficulty that CF would add to the otherwise long list of worries.
My friend group at our high school graduation
Thankfully, my roommate situation was not a stressor to add to the list. I met my current roommate on Instagram back in November, and she came to visit me over winter break. I was able to tell her all about CF before we committed to living with each other, and she was so understanding. I could’ve taken the easy route and chosen a single room, but I was worried about the social aspect and I didn’t want to start off college alone.
Me + my roommate!
When I moved at the end of August I met a lot of people. I was so focused on getting to know new people that I didn’t have time to think about how much I missed my family and friends from back home. However, it started to become a little harder as I watched friendships form, and I felt like I wasn’t making the connections that everyone else was. I had this wonderful relationship with my roommate, but it was overshadowed by the fact that I wanted a group. I began to forget treatments more often than I would at home because I didn’t have someone to remind me, and I would constantly try to put myself out there in order to make friends. I began to lose sight of my priorities, and I struggled to make connections. However, as I joined activities the connections started to come a little bit more naturally. I joined a sorority with my roommate which has been a blast, and we like to go to Campus Fellowship together on Monday nights for bible study and Thursday nights for a little campus worship session. I am also in a pharmacy fraternity since I am studying pre-pharmacy, and it has been an amazing way to make connections with other students that are in the 2+4 pharmacy program at Drake. I have become close with the 4 other freshman girls who were accepted into the group and it has been so fun getting to know them.
Throughout the business of my life, I have still been able to find time for the reason I chose Drake: choir. Despite the hectic pharmacy course load, Drake allows for students to study pharmacy and participate in the music program. I am in the auditioned treble choir, and it adds the perfect balance in my schedule to be able to go sing with the amazing group of girls. No matter what kind of a day I’m having, choir is where I can let out all of my stress, forget about whatever else is going on, and sing.
As stressful as everything has been, it has also been really good for me. I have been learning responsibility for my treatments on an entirely new level, getting out of my social comfort zone, and waking up before my classes to study with some friends (which high school Alexa never would have done). So while college has been a whole new world, it has been a good change, and I know there are so many more amazing opportunities to come!