Dear College Senior,
At this point in your academic career you are no stranger to the stress and struggles that come with being a full time student. With endless projects and papers and exams, it seems basically impossible to find extra hours in the day to manage all that, plus a job and the little social life you have that’s necessary to keep you sane. It seems like everyone is demanding more and more from you every time you turn around, and the expectations at this point in the semester are sky high. The feeling of having to be perfect and get everything done on time can be overwhelming. Not to mention the strain on personal relationships that may be affected during this time, and the pressure to have your post-graduation life all figured out already.
With all of this weighing you down, it is 100% okay, and actually healthy, to break down sometimes. If you feel so overwhelmed that all you can do is cry, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s also okay to take mental breaks and just lay in your bed watching Netflix for an hour, or going to sit outside to do nothing but stare at the sky. You can’t give 100% all of the time, or else you’ll spread yourself way too thin and just end up crashing later on. You have to be patient with yourself and remind yourself that you are only one person, and there are only 24 hours in a day. But once you’ve had your breather, you have to get back up and work that much harder. When you’re feeling too stressed and frustrated with the amount of responsibilities you have, just think about why you came to college in the first place. Think about your reasons for choosing your major, and what it will be like to have the dream job one day that you’re so passionate about. And then remember how incredibly blessed you are to have the opportunity to go to college in the first place. Ten years from now when you’re finally wherever it is you want to be right now, you’ll look back and be thankful for these struggles because it made you that much stronger and showed you that you can handle anything life throws at you, and it will all be worth it.
Don’t waste time making lists and plans for the next 3 weeks. Only worry about tomorrow, and just take everything one day at a time. The next day and next week will still come, and you will get through it, but you can’t spend what little time you have dwelling on the amount of things you have to do – it’ll only make it seem that much more overwhelming. And don’t be afraid to say no to things sometimes. Even though it’s your last semester in college, your friends will still be there after exams to go out with you on Thursday nights, and there will always be other chances to make up for missing a bachelorette weekend. Don’t let people make you feel obligated to give even more of yourself away when you know it’s only going to cause you more stress later on.
The most important thing to know is that perspective is key right now. Looking at the big picture of your life, how well you do in the next 3 weeks before graduation will not matter that much in the long run. You’ve made it this far in college, you can get through the next few weeks. If you slip up and make a C on your final instead of a B, that is completely okay. The world will not end. You will still graduate. If you go a week without talking to your friends, that’s okay too, they will still be there. Life has it’s own way of working itself out, so just remember that all you can do in one day is your best. And if you end up failing at something, then you can have peace in knowing that it simply wasn’t what God had planned for you. Trust and pray and you’ll end up exactly where you’re supposed to be; and no matter how this day turns out, the sun will always rise tomorrow and you can start over again.