By Kaia Ryden on February 2025
“Everyone struggles,” “someone has it harder than you,” and “tough it out,” are phrases that I’ve been fed my entire life. Something that I have been teaching myself recently is that struggling is okay. Each person’s situation is different, and just because someone else is struggling doesn’t make your situation any easier. To be honest, I am blessed. For most of my life, I was sheltered and hidden in a comfortable life and didn’t know the reality of how people struggle. As an adult, I have only experienced what people might consider trivial struggles. But what I want people to know is that no matter what anyone might call your struggle – trivial or unimportant – if it’s important to you and it is affecting you, then it’s a valid struggle.
Recently, I have been going through a difficult time with one of the people I live with, and it has been hard on me. Usually, I am the type of person who tries to see the best in everyone, even when they do me wrong, because that’s what aligns with my values. However, this person has caused me to become sour and depressed, which has been affecting my schoolwork and my motivation to do anything. Looking back on the situation, I can see that I was definitely letting it take control of my life. My old roommate was not only physically messing up our apartment; she was manipulating my other roommate and me. I have since moved out of that apartment and haven’t dwelled on it much since, but I thought it was important for me to let others know how I got through it.
Struggling is a part of life and is an important part of maturing and improving yourself. From this particular situation, I have learned that I need to get better at confrontation and speaking my mind. I believe the most helpful thing that brought me through this hard time was speaking to someone or journaling. Any kind of outlet that will help you is worth exploring.
Journaling has been a huge part of my life recently. Not only does it help express one’s feelings in writing, it also helps one process their feelings fully. Something I like to do when I’m feeling down is read through my old journals. Most of the time, it made me feel better, as I would write about a problem that I felt would never go away or never get better, but by the time I reread that entry, I was able to see the improvements that had been made. If you need help, don’t be afraid to seek it. Metro State has Mental Health and Wellness Resources available for students.
In addition, there are plenty of other resources around the Twin Cities. The National Alliance on Mental Illness in Minnesota offers a variety of options and programs for those in need.
Even if it feels like it will never get better, trust me, it will get better. There is always a solution, no matter how hard it may be to get there. Remember, you are not alone, and you are loved.