5 Things The Beginning of Studying Abroad is Equivalent To

I know Facebook may make things look pretty and fun, but if you haven't figured it out yet, let me break it down: it's not all sunshine and rainbows outside of social media. Although I am eternally greatful for being able to live and learn in a different country, I must say there are days when I feel the insanity slowly creeping over my entire soul and I just need to shut myself inside my bedroom for an hour or two and watch some Animal Planet. This post is more cathartic than anything else, but in all seriousness, it's not a walk in the park.

1. Driving a Nail into the Middle of Your Forehead

Imagine, for a moment that you are asleep. You're having a normal dream. You're told you have to research and choose all of your classes this semester on your own, and they (for some weird reason) all start on different dates, times, places, and one of them actually started two days ago. When, suddenly, you end up in your classroom unable to understand 50% of the things your teacher is saying. Oh, and you don't have any of the books you need either. Not only this, but you've been told you have to pass all your university classes at a minmum of 15 credits, AND they all have to transfer or you won't graduate on time. Sound like a nightmare? Welcome to my life.

2. Sticking a Needle into Your Eyeball

Filling out paperwork after paperwork in a language you don't know or understand and the only people who can tell you how to fill it out also speak said language and are using words you've never heard before to describe something you've never seen before. Not only this, but you're shoved in front of a government official who is asking you questions you should know the answer to but all you know how to say is "I am a student" and "I am studying here for six months".

3. Drinking a Pot of Boiling-hot Water

After a day of attempting to talk in another language and describing things to a point of no return, you suddenly find your throat, mind, and sanity at it's end. At the end you just want to speak to someone in English because your brain just can't take anything else. All you can do is drink coffee after coffee hoping you can wake yourself up enough to speak comprehensive sentences. You don't know how many people you've said the wrong thing to/or offended... but it doesn't help that the word "penis" and your favorite type of pasta is so similar in pronunciation it's insane.

4. Trying to Wake Up from Sleep Paralysis

That moment in time when you literally cannot speak, and you forget every word you've ever known in that language. Not only that, but it only happens during important conversations and you're just dumbstruck and you can't move and you can't speak and you've officially become unable to do anything but look like an idiot. "I don't know" and "I don't understand" and "Sorry" are the most commonly used phrases because apparently talking slowly is unheard of in other cultures.

5. Slowly becoming Numb to All Emotion

You don't know how many people have judged you today, and frankly you don't care. Walking outside with your shirt on backwards and your hair wet is the least of your concerns. Blatant catcalls down the street are slowly turning you mad, and the idea that American girls are "easy" is so commonplace you actually wonder how many of them have watched American Pie and thought it was real. The city and country have lost a little bit of their mystery and fantasy, and recognizing you can't zip off to a different country every single weekend because you have to understand what's going on in your classes is frustrating.

Yes, I know I'm dramatic. And I couldn't emphasize enough how I'm not looking for sympathy, because I do realize how lucky I am for being able to have this opportunity. It's just not easy being in a different place, with a different culture, and a different language away from everyone you know and love.