Tires squealing. Black top glistening. The truck spun out of control and before I know it, the world is spinning. Blood stained hands, shaky breath, tear-filled eyes, and no way to get to school…but I was going to be okay.

Screaming in the household. Hateful words that cannot be unspoken. I was running out into the night with nowhere to go and no clue what to do next…but I was going to be okay.

I stood beside him and watched his father take his last breath. I fed him when he had no food and was in and out of jobs. After three and a half years, I thought I was going to marry him. He decided he couldn’t do it anymore…but I was going to be okay.

Adulthood. We all waited for this point in our lives to come. We can finally claim our independence and do as we feel without worrying about what our parents think. Little did we know the most challenging part of our lives had just begun.

Being an adult comes with hardships that sometimes we don’t know how to face. So how do we handle the crazy things life throws at us?

I am not a counselor. I am not a healer of any sort. I am just like you. I have had my fair share of bad encounters just like you. The hardships I have faced are not any less or any worse than yours. We all have struggles we have to face every day.

One thing I can say is. Just breathe. You may not have any clue about what you’re going to do or how you’re going to get there, but you will. Problems you struggle with don’t get solved overnight. They require effort to solve.

Attitude has also been beneficial with everything that I have encountered. You can sit in that corner and sulk, or you can pick yourself up, brush the dust off and tackle that hardship that is in your way. How you perceive yourself and how you perceive your attitude on the subject defines how you’re going to overcome your obstacles.

I have lost friends and my boyfriend, I nearly lost my life, and there are so many other things I faced in this crazy year.

2019 has probably been the most eye-opening experience I have ever encountered in my life. One bad thing just kept happening after another and I had no idea why.

With all the bad things that have happened, I realized something. Everything bad was replaced with something better. Each defining moment was something I always had a problem with; it just had to hit me in the face to realize what needed to change.

I wanted to cry. I wanted to give up and shut myself off from the world, but I couldn’t. I wasn’t to let my hardships define me and bring me down, so I learned from them instead.

You can do the same. Pick yourself up from whatever bad situation you may be in, learn from it, then do something about it.

We have to deal with all the hardships that hit us in life, but how you deal with them is up to you. You can let it consume you, or you can look at your hardship straight in the face and say, “Bring it on.”

Editor’s Note: If you believe you need support in managing stress, depression, or anxiety, visit the Counseling Center in Humphreys 131 or call 660-543-4060.