This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Bentley chapter.

You’re in CoNo. It’s the last five minutes of class. You preemptively start to pack up your books, and put on your game face as you ready yourself for the physical, emotional, and mental exertion that lies ahead. There’s a brief pause as you try to neglect the reality of what’s about to happen, although as class officially ends, you have no choice but to face it: you’re about to walk to your next class on Upper.

Stage 1:

Bracing yourself as you warily try to assure yourself that you’re ready for the perilous journey ahead.

Stage 2:

Approaching the first set of stairs on Lower—a palpable representation of the inescapable emotional rollercoaster that now lies right in front of you.

Stages 3 and 4:

Making it all the way up the Lower stairs, feeling your throbbing pulse nearly burst out of your neck…

…only to realize that you’ve still got more than half of your trek remaining.

Stage 5:

Contemplating dropping your class on Lower, because it’s only a GB requirement…right?

Stage 6:

Feebly attempting to convince yourself that it’s worth it, because your inner optimist tells you that you’ll be down fifty pounds by the semester’s end.

Stage 7:

Confronting the utter monstrosity that is the Falcone Stairs, having already ventured through Lower and most of Upper over the course of your expedition.