REFLECTION
"The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience"
-Eleanor Roosevelt
When I began my time as a Sant'Anna intern, I was a 21 year old girl who had never even set foot in an airport, let alone been on a plane, especially one that would take me across the world. I had no idea what was in store for me, other than jet lag, new classmates, and some internship that awaited me at my school. The trip was daunting to say the least. I was terrified to fail and afraid of the unknown, but the experiences I gained in my 5 weeks as an intern at Sant'Anna were the most valuable experiences of my life yet.
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When I began my internship, I was determined to focus on student wellness in relation to mental health. My first challenge was accepting that I would have to focus on more than just mental health abroad since there was already a host of information available, both online through studies and due to the work of a previous intern. This challenge ended up making me reconsider what wellness is as a whole and I began to shift my focus to the personal, professional, and academic aspects of life as they related to wellness. Once I did, I had a whole new world of opportunities.
By challenging myself to focus on something new that hadn't been studied yet, I generated a first-of-its-kind study about how studying abroad affects professional school admissions and attendance. Although this project had (and still has) its own challenges with approval and outreach, I'm happily carrying it on beyond my time at Sant'Anna as an official study for the school. It will be a great way to put the school's name out into the world of research, especially as a pioneer study.
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Beyond my challenges in the office, I also had a hard time adjusting to the lifestyle that Sorrento offered. I was used to cooking 3 meals a day at home, having a pretty free schedule, and knowing how to do simple things like order at a restaurant or get from place to place. I had to completely relearn how to navigate in and out of Sorrento using buses, trains, and even ferries and water taxis. I had to put myself on a strict schedule to focus on school and working while also making sure I had time to enjoy all that Italy and the "study abroad" experience had to offer. Each day, I tried to learn a little bit of Italian so that I could have an easier time interacting with locals and doing basic daily tasks. This gave me confidence that I can turn any uncomfortable situation or challenge into a true learning experience, and I feel so much more at home in Italy now.
This newfound confidence extends beyond just my abilities to adapt. From this experience, I've become more self-motivated. Having to manage my time and hours without someone constantly telling me what to do showed that I can accept a large amount of responsibility and follow through with quality work. I also learned to deal with ambiguity, which used to be a weakness for me. I was given the freedom to solve problems and finish projects with minimal to no guidelines, so I had to learn to trust myself and go with my gut. Seeing how impressed my supervisors were with the work I did without much direction was proof that I had improved upon this weakness.
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Moving forward, I know I'll continue to carry this confidence with me into my future education and my career. I have only further solidified my interest in mental health and can say that I am more motivated than ever to become a pediatric physician's assistant with a focus on mental illness. Seeing how a different lifestyle, diet, and culture can influence wellness will be useful as I continue forming a more global understanding of healthcare.
Being able to say that I completed a 120 hour internship abroad in a country that I had never been to or experienced will give me a leg-up over other students who never got this opportunity. I feel extremely grateful for my experiences in Sorrento and at Sant'Anna. The connections I made here are connections that I know will last a long time. Although I'm sad to leave, I'm excited to return home with a new perspective as a global citizen.
