During my time at upper school and sixth form, I often struggled to leave the house and get on the bus (because of anxiety and seasonal depression), so I had no idea how I was going to manage to move away from home to be at university. It always ended up in tears and back-and-forths with my parents who only wanted the best for me.

I also had really awful attendance, so always had additional support at school, including a session once a week to talk about how I was getting on and to get advice. The moment I got to university I found the mental health team and gave them the heads up that I already struggled and felt concerned about how I'd get on in a whole new environment away from home. 

In my first week, I really went by the 'fake it until you make it' motto. I pushed myself to go to places like the Metro Bar and met other students at my accommodation (most of which I am still very close friends with today. Because I enjoyed myself that much, I didn’t actually need any of the support from the mental health team.

Starting my course (which I was very passionate about and always looked forward to going in for), meeting amazing lifetime friends, turning my bedroom here into my very own cosy space, getting into a routine, and regularly phoning family members made me realise everything was okay. And since then, my anxiety/depression has never been how it was (positive, of course!).

I always say how university really did turn me from a teenager into a woman - even the little "silly" things like answering the phone! Shocker- it's dead easy! My confidence has completely evolved, and my mindset is pretty good, too.

I'm constantly sending my parents photos of my great cooking while I'm over here, I love running, I both meditate and visit the church opposite the Luton Campus. University life has really given me a newfound confidence.