Teen Times: In three months' time I will turn 20. That's it. I will officially no longer be a teenager and will be embarking on my twenties. It's not too scary a thought until I remember that from there it's only 10 years to 30.
Apart from that, I'm looking forward to being 20, though I really enjoyed being 19. There is none of that awful awkwardness that afflicts you between the ages of 13 and 15. There is no horrible Leaving Cert stress that threatens to crush you at the age of 17 and 18. That's all done and dusted for most of us at 19, except for those brave souls for whom I have the utmost respect and admiration - those go back to repeat the exams. I don't think I could do it.
Some of us completed our first year at college - each with varying degrees of success. I, on the other hand, did the smart thing. I took a gap year after finishing school. My advice: just do it! It's perfect timing - before you get stuck in college for three years and before you can't afford to because you have to find a real job after college. When else is it acceptable to work full-time for a few months while still bumming off your parents, and then go off travelling? I worked for six months - not something I particularly enjoyed but a learning experience nonetheless - and then went to India for three months with a friend. It was the best choice I could have made.
It gave me time to find a college course I actually wanted to do, something I didn't have in sixth year, and I got to go travelling!
Friends told us "you're so lucky"; maybe we were but I just thought "you could do it too if you wanted to."
It's not that difficult; don't be afraid to do it! We did voluntary work in Calcutta for six weeks, made some good friends, then spent the rest of our time travelling around India and having a ball.
Some people we met told us we were quite young to be out there but we coped just fine. I felt sorry for the English college graduates we met who had to go home to face £10,000 of college debts, whereas all we had to go home to were happy friends and parents, summer jobs and then college.
Out of all the teen years, 19 was the best for me: I had the least pressures and the best experiences. I urge any school leaver who is considering taking a gap year to go for it! Don't think it's hard, scary or not worth it. Believe me, it is worth it.
Now I'm looking forward to getting my brain back to work in college. Going into first year I will already have some amazing experiences behind me, such as working with street kids or watching the sunrise over the Himalayas.
Take the opportunity, take the gap year and make the most of it.
•Caitlín O'Mahony (19) lives in Bray, Co Wicklow
•Submissions of 500-word articles are welcome from teenagers to teentimes@irish-times.ie. Please include a phone number
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