Do I sound like a troubled and emo young adult? Fear not, I was simply at EARS. Cornell EARS standards for Empathy, Assistance, & Referral Services, a free advice/listening couseling-like service for students who want to talk about any issues they or someone they know has. Now normally I would never admit I went to someone who loosely reassembles a psychiatrist, because let’s face it, I’m about as sane and practical as they come. I make pro’s and con’s lists for everything. Every time I take an extended trip my travel plans are carefully outlined by the hour and color-coded by categories on an excel document. I compartmentalize so well that I have different versions of my resume that fit each major career paths that I may pursue.

The reason I was on that squishy sofa next to those giant teddy bears was because a friend of a friend was undergoing training to become a counselor and needed someone to practice on. No one else she knew had issues they wanted to share so I (bravely) volunteered. It started off superficial and shallow, “sometimes I feel a bit stressed”. Duh, it’s Cornell. “Everyone wants different things from me”. Er, it’d be creepy if they all wanted the same thing (‘brainsssssssssss’). Yes, the cynical voice in my head is quite loud. We dug deeper. Time passed. I felt surprisingly relieved. At the end of the day, there was no  single pinpointed stress. The joint conclusion by the counselor and myself was that I in fact had too many issues. HA! Take that Freud.

All jokes aside, EARS was definitely an interesting and beneficial experience. Next time I might even go and just chat now that I’m familiar with the atmosphere there and know that the counselors are absolutely wonderful. For anyone who just wants someone to listen, EARS is located in 213 Willard Straight Hall.

On another note, Phoebe will be taking a break from sanity for the next 48 hours as she rejoices the completion of all her prelims!

[Edit: Nov 26] Oh gosh, I just read this in the advice column of the Daily Sun and it scared me how it reflected my sentiments and state of mind almost word. for. word.