My QLC was much like everyone else’s.
I completely freaked out.
My last semester of college was spent slaving over a thesis on John Milton’s Paradise Lost (I am either a total massochist or one ballsy student), crying, drinking copious amounts of alcohol, and panicking over what was coming next.
While I couldn’t wait to graduate and finally bust out of my small college, I couldn’t help but worry about what my life was going to be like from graduation on.
I had no money. Didn’t have a job lined up. No internships in place. In fact, I think I barely had my mind in one piece. And to top it all off I was moving back home and living in a state with one of the worst unemployment rates in the country.
Life as I knew it was over, and my brain wasn’t helping.
Aren’t I supposed to just go straight to work? What would I even work in? I can’t make a living off of writing, right? Aren’t I suppose to move the other side of the country or something? Great, 13% unemployment in Miami and the only available jobs come with warning labels. Should I start dating again and find a potential husband? Wait, marriage? Am I crazy? I’m only 22! Oh crap, I’m not used to living in a huge city where no one speaks English anymore. Culture shock in my own hometown?!? This is ridiculous!
Needless to say, with no apparent direction and an overactive mind, I had a pretty epic emotional breakdown in my kitchen while my parents just stared at me quizzically like I had officially lost my marbles.
A travel opportunity presented itself and I thought it would be the perfect way to make me realize I was being an idiot. So I ended up in Europe for a few weeks with no plans in an attempt to prove to myself that I don’t have to be in control of everything and life has a way of figuring itself out. When I got back I started to slowly make some progress with only a sporadic hissy fit here and there.
I started making some money as a freelance writer, eventually found a job with corporate America, got my finances in order, started putting my health first, and even founded a co-op business with a friend that I met through a college roommate.
I once again did what everyone else eventually has to eventually do: figure it out as you go along
Not everyone need to be as dramatic as I was though. And not everyone needs to run off to Europe with a backpack to prove a point to themselves.
What we need to do is trust ourselves. The human spirit is incredibly resilient and we can adapt pretty well if we allow ourselves to do so.
In short, we need to believe that life really does have a way of figuring itself out.
Just as nature adapts and renews itself, so do we.
Amanda is a freelance writer, copy editor, blogger, translator and social media strategist based out of Miami, FL. She writes for Grad Meets World and Digital Zen Ink. Follower her on Twitter: @amandaabella
If you are interested in contributing to the Quarterlife Crisis series feel free to contact me.
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