Freshman Year of College Recap + Advice
Hello beautiful people! I cannot believe freshman year of college is over!!!! What?! I wanted to recap the year and my thoughts, feelings, and anything that comes to mind. College was everything and more, but there were certainly some bumps in the road and that’s ok.
I am currently home and have been for a few weeks. After I finished school I came home, slept for days, tanned, and then got back to the grind. I am interning and tutoring and about to begin teaching yoga again! This summer is exactly what I needed. A mix of rest, work, fun, family, friends, home, and travel. Normally, I wouldn’t want to be in Florida for even a second because it’s hot and humid, but college changes things. I was more than ready to come home and just be home even though I love college. So let’s do a full recap. I’m going to get into the full nitty gritty and all the feels I experienced.
From the beginning:
The summer after senior year was incredible. This is the summer where I emphasize being free and living life as much as you can. This is the time when you have very little responsibility. You haven’t started college, you just finished high school, and you don’t need to do anything to be productive. Make use of this time! Hangout with your friends and family. Go to your favorite restaurants, workout classes, coffee shops, etc. If you have the opportunity to travel, do it. Let go, reward yourself. My senior year summer was the most perfect thing in the world and I feel so extremely grateful. I began the summer hanging out with friends and going to grad/end of year parties. Then, I went on the most epic family trip to Turkey and Greece and continued on without my parents in Paris, Rome, and Florence (check the blog for more details). We finished the trip with my sister’s 21st birthday in NYC and then it was time to come home. I worked at The Yoga Shack, tutored, worked out, and spent time with my family for the next month. I prepped for school making Pinterest boards, lists, and buying everything I needed. It was the ultimate mix. Besides having fun and letting go, I would make sure you give yourself enough time to relax, fill up your cup, and prepare for the ride of your life aka college.
Ok I could actually post pictures of this trip forever so I am forcing myself to stop here.
Let’s talk college now:
Right as school was about to begin I was so extremely excited. I was ready to take on the world and I thought I could fit anything and everything into my schedule. News flash… that’s impossible. Nothing prepared me for college and this isn’t a good or a bad thing, it just is. It is an experience everyone has to go through, but if you are on your way to freshman year keep in mind that the first semester is bound to humble you. Let’s be honest though, we all probably need to be humbled lol.
I was ready to work a million jobs and take the max amount of credits and start clubs and be in clubs and go out and do all the things. However, energy and time are not abundant. My advice is to go in full of excitement, but not too hasty. There is no need to take the max amount credits and the hardest classes. Honestly, that would be a dumb decision. I was lucky that my parents would not allow me to take max credits which I didn’t understand at first, but now I am forever thankful.
College is not just about school and not just about social life, it is a mix of both and it is a balance you will have to try and find. It is not easy to find this balance, but listening to your intuition will be a huge helping hand.
Go out, try new things, meet new people, and don’t be afraid. It can be scary to be in a new place, but remember everyone around you is adjusting too and it truly is not that deep.
College in general is overwhelming. New people, place, school, new everything. At the end of senior year I had “mastered” my “perfect” schedule. I was working out twice a day doing my favorite workouts, teaching yoga and spending tons of time at the shack, being with my family, doing awesome in school, loving the blog life. But… life is never “perfect” and even when you think it is, growth doesn’t happen in the comfort zone. That was a key mantra for me going into college. I loved my life at home, but to be honest I didn’t have much of a social life and I hadn’t found my people. I also didn’t love Florida and was yearning for a new adventure. I truly was living my 40 year old lifestyle, and I loved it, but I knew I needed to switch it up.
Patterns, schedules, routines are all things I love and thrive off of, but I needed to learn to go with the flow and take the edge off. College is the time to embrace new things. Both school work and social life are extremely important.
So, when I got to college and all throughout my first year I made sure to experience my new surroundings. It was a blast. One thing I am super proud of is how I balanced social life and school. One thing I need to work on is not filling every single moment and burning out. It is good to have free time and a moment to spare. You don’t need to fill your day everyday because plans come up and new adventures arise. I loved that I was always busy and productive while also being social, but at times it was too much. I was stretching myself too thin and this is something I have always struggled with.
With that being said, I know a lot of people think they will be a completely different person in college, and I’m not saying you won’t try new things, but for the most part your personality is ingrained in you. Therefore, a lot of the things you do now, you will do in college. You aren’t going to magically transform into a new person when you get to a new school.
So, know your strengths and weaknesses and know what you need to work on because you will most likely need to work on those same things.
The biggest biggest piece of advice I could give is don’t compare and stay in your own lane. It is you vs. you. We are all on the journey of becoming our best selves and the only way to do that is by focusing on you. We all need different things and that is a beautiful thing. I never compared looks or superficial aspects, but I did compare in terms of productivity. When my roommate would still be doing homework at 10pm I would find myself questioning if I need to do that as well even when I knew I didn’t. The guilt would start to set in. You may notice you compare in ways like this and you have to be intentional about stopping it. I would even suggest brainstorming things about yourself. When do you like to wake up? Do homework? Workout? I like to wake up early and do everything possible in the morning. I know my mind and body tap out after a certain time of night. However, that isn’t the case for a lot of people. It’s also important to note that everyone requires different amounts of studying, sleep, etc. and everyone is taking different classes.
As far as rush goes…
The experience of rush is crazy. You are constantly exhausted and stressed, but it is also so fun. You get to meet tons of new people right at the beginning of school when you are more than ready to find friends. I think it is a great experience and something I would recommend trying if you’re thinking about it. Throughout high school I went back and forth between whether I wanted to be in a sorority or not. In the end, I rushed, joined a sorority, and dropped it! Sorority life is simply not for me and that’s ok.
Must bring items:
I also wanted to include a list of things I couldn’t have lived without.
Vanity mirror: Mine was bluetooth and it is so worth investing in a good quality vanity that you can have for awhile especially because the lighting is not great in the dorms. I didn’t just use the light for my makeup, but it was helpful while doing homework as well.
A lamp, for more lighting!
Essential oil diffuser/candles (shushhh yes you can use candles)
Air purifier: forever angry I did not have one because I was sick all the time
Medicine kit: any possible medicine you will need or might need or could need, get it
Curtain and tension rod to cover your clothes: it’s so much cuter this way
Fun pictures to hang up
Optional but I made a collage and it was so personal and adorable
The best possible mattress pad you can find
A big carpet: it makes it feel like home and lights up the space
In the end…
Just go do stuff and have fun. Work hard, play hard is the only way to do it. Know yourself.
