End of Term Reflections

The past three months have felt like six months yet also as if they’ve flown by in the blink of an eye. I started planning my year in London the moment I was accepted to graduate school. I anticipated an intense year trying to balance returning to school and exploring Europe, but I thought the earlier I started planning, the more I could squeeze into each day. I began the year with a curated wish list of London experiences, not realizing I had failed to account for how demanding the year would be.

Before beginning my course, a friend wisely asked me what I thought might change the most about my daily routine once I returned to school. I predicted some self-care habits might fall away, but I truly thought I was diligent enough to maintain my daily practices of journaling, meditating, reading, and exercising (ha!).

For the past three years, I have been fortunate to have tremendous time to work on myself – to learn how to enjoy spending time alone to taking the time prioritize my health. I even cultivated my introverted preferences, all the while dreaming of being in busier, more exciting places.

I’ve certainly gotten my wish since moving to London. But it’s both a blessing and a curse to have a catalog of my journeys through this blog. I can pinpoint exactly where I have struggled and when I’ve had huge moments of growth. As far as transitions go, this past one has been much easier, but is has been challenging in new and unexpected ways.

First, I had great ambitions to grow this blog and chronicle each of my adventures in the city, school, and Europe. As you already know, this hasn’t quite happened. I enjoyed a beautiful first week in London as a tourist, but as soon as I moved into my dorm and school started, everything else was sacrificed for the sake of studying.

However, I’ve learned valuable lessons about what I need to operate under stress and, for the first time ever, time constraints. I am slowly learning how to balance my main health priorities – exercising, eating right, getting enough sleep – while also meeting my extroverted needs of making new friends and exploring the city. In this process I have started being much kinder and patient with myself – forgiving myself if I have to sleep in instead of studying or going to the gym or learning how to say no if I need to meal prep instead of spending time with a new friend.

My current experience is so reminiscent of my boarding school or college, spaces I’ve yearned for since graduating, and it is empowering to see how much I’ve grown and the new person I am in these settings. For the first time, though, I feel inundated with opportunities for what’s next without a clear direction of where I will ultimately go.

A very astute new friend challenged my perspective when she encouraged me to reflect on how much I have learned over the past term. As I review notes from class over the break, I am beginning to realize how much more I know now versus three months ago. It’s no secret that I love learning, but I am absolutely loving studying and exploring in graduate school. And though I also love certainty, knowing that I am at the right institution studying something I’m passionate about, makes me a little less nervous about not knowing my exact next steps.

Before I began my course, a loved one and alumna of LSHTM warned me it would take at least six months to settle in. I honestly thought that was ridiculous and way too much time, but after surviving my first 90 days, I see she had a valid point.

I am so happy to catch up on much needed sleep and rest over this break, but I am wildly looking forward to the new year where I hope to be even stronger in my studies, friendships, and ability to venture. I have great aspirations to start teaching dance classes, see new boroughs of London, and to blog more (hopefully stating my goals here will actually hold me accountable). But as I am learning, my to-do list never quite gets completely finished, and I am slowly starting to become comfortable with this.

Here’s to ending the year with a lovely visit from my family and to coming back recharged in the new year, with hopefully even more content. Happy Holidays and thanks for continuing to tune in!