Tell us about yourself.
I’m Connie. I’m from Lindstrom, Minnesota, and I’m a junior at Augsburg. I am a psychology major and am planning to hopefully be an art minor.
What brought you to Augsburg College?
I went to college in Superior, Wisconsin for my first year of school. I got sober up there, but it’s not easy being in recovery in college when almost no other students are sober. A friend of mine knew about StepUP and helped me learn more about the program. I also wanted to be close to my family, who all live near Minneapolis. Because of the StepUP program and the college’s location in Minneapolis, Augsburg seemed like the best fit.
What are you enjoying most about Augsburg and about StepUP?
Being at Augsburg, I love the diversity of the college. I’ve learned a lot and am grateful that my mind has been opened to new perspectives. I also love living in the city.
Being in StepUP… I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like being here completely takes away something that I’m stressed about. When I was in Superior, on the weekends especially, you could hear everyone partying in the dorms. It made me feel different and alone. Here, I don’t feel alone because of my sobriety. I don’t feel different. Sobriety just seems normal, which is a good thing for me right now. I don’t get caught up in stressing about being sober. Instead, I just am sober.
It sounds like being is StepUP has shaped your college experience in many ways. Can you say more about that?
I think a big part of what you do and who you are is shaped by who and what you’re around. Along with being in recovery, I struggle with depression. When I was in Superior, I was alone with myself. I didn’t want to be healthy and didn’t care about school. I did care about sobriety, but it’s hard to progress when you’re alone and don’t really want to connect with people who drink all the time. But here in StepUP, things feel different. Being around people who want to be healthy, want good things for themselves, care about school, and care about sobriety helps me to do those things too. StepUP has positively influenced my GPA and my sobriety. It’s also helped me become more willing to talk to people, which is something I’ve struggled with.
Tell us about your passions.
I’ve realized that when you’re using – or at least when I was using – since the only thing you really care about is using, you don’t listen to your heart when it tells you that you like doing something. You don’t pursue it. When I wasn’t doing the things I like, it contributed to my depression. It felt like, “If you’re not doing anything that you like, how could you be happy?” So I started listening when I realized that I liked being creative. I started painting more. I started drawing more. For me, art feels natural. It feels like this is exactly what I’m supposed to be doing. It’s almost like breathing. If I stopped creating art, it would feel like, “Why are you not breathing?” And I’d realize, “You’re right.”
When I do something that makes my heart happy and makes me feel better, I listen to that feeling, and I do more of the things that make me feel that way. Listening to music is one of the biggest things that helps change my mood and helps me connect with positive feelings.
Who are some of your favorite artists?
I listen to a broad range. A lot of people know that I like Prince. I like rap music and hip-hop. The trendy music right now – I think that’s just more fun to listen to. But with artists like the Beatles, Chance the Rapper, or the Red Hot Chili Peppers, I listen to the lyrics more. I like music with deep lyrics that resonate with the way I think, and I can find that in their music.
What advice would you have for an incoming StepUP Student?
I struggled with some issues when I first came in here, and the only reason that I handled them well is because I worked through them very closely with my StepUP counselors and asked for a lot of support. They were situations that I didn’t know how to handle, so close guidance from the counselors was really helpful.
Is there anything else you want to share?
I just want to tell everyone that I’ve talked with and connected with in StepUP that the conversations and experiences I’ve had with everyone I’ve met here have been really important to me. From the smallest conversation to the deepest one, that human connection means a lot to me. I’m grateful for all the experiences I’ve had with the people here in StepUP.