Rae Luna Lagnese became overwhelmed during the transition to taking classes at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

They had transferred from Northern Virginia Community College, where they earned an associate degree, and are now pursuing a bachelor’s in psychology.

High school was regimented and there weren’t many specialized classes, Lagnese said. But what it did offer was safety nets, including the possibility of retaking courses.

However, in college, students have to ensure they’re applying themselves properly, and “it can be very daunting for people that have to take that responsibility for their education,” they said.

Lagnese worked through a series of mental health challenges during the adjustment, including anxiety and neurodivergency. But, determined to remain on track, Lagnese stayed focused and overcame hurdles, securing the Katharine Z. Creane scholarship for those efforts.

“A lot of what I was overcoming was a lot of mental barriers to allow myself to succeed, right, self-sabotage and learning about time management, learning a lot of different skills and learning to be more resilient with the challenges that I could not possibly foresee with school — to be able to thrive in school and not just survive and get a degree,” Lagnese said.

Lagnese is an aspiring cognitive behavioral therapist, with interest in research and teaching at a university. Some of that stems from their own experience while starting therapy about two years ago, “and it changed my life for the better,” they said.

Lagnese navigated challenges that confront many college students, but “for someone with a lot of anxiety, going into something like new territory is two times, maybe even more, challenging than a neurotypical person going in.”

With help, Lagnese was able to embrace some of the changes they were faced with. Whether it was crafting to-do lists or overcoming guilt to make sure to take time to focus on something outside of schoolwork, Lagnese said a new outlook helped them recharge.

Painting, writing, drawing and crocheting have all helped, Lagnese said.

“Instead of feeling really anxious over it, I found that I succeeded way easier than I would anxious and then succeeding,” Lagnese said.

Lagnese is hoping to be able to teach people how to think, empowering them with tools needed to “successfully think emotionally and cognitively,” they said.

“I’d really like to be the kind of person that people go to just to gain more skills and more strategies and to learn more about how to work through their own strengths and their own weaknesses and go from there,” Lagnese said.

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