The other day, I found myself feeling overwhelmed about everything that you could possibly stress about. The future, my career, what I was going to eat for dinner, etc. I was so lost in my own head that I forgot that I had made plans with a friend. It was at this moment that I snapped back into reality and got out of my head.Â
I realized that for the past few months, I had been so stressed and caught up with trying to maintain myself and my life so perfectly that I had completely lost sight of the fact that I am 20 years old and in college. I am not running out of time, and neither are you.
There are so many incredible opportunities in front of you when you are young, and it can feel overwhelming. However, it is important to take a minute and feel grateful for where you are and who you are surrounded by.
With the stress of school often being all-consuming, I am guilty of forgetting what a privilege getting to attend a university is in the first place.
We have all had electives or general education courses that we felt were useless to our degree. However, there will never be another time in our lives when we can learn about so many different topics at the same time. It can be a chance to broaden your knowledge and build your character, if you let it.
When I took this moment to realize that my stressors were about how to balance school, my clubs and my social life, I suddenly felt a weight lifted off my shoulders. I realized how small my problems truly are in the grand scheme of things and immediately felt more in control of myself.
College is a stressful time to be figuring out your plans for the future, and it is the first time that you are independent.
It is so important to slow down and give yourself grace during stressful times. Have your slow mornings, take the longer route to class because it’s more scenic and go meet up with your friends just because you can. It is so easy to get into a slump when you’re constantly in a rush, and it is a recipe for burnout.
It’s easy to feel like every decision you make right now is permanent, like choosing the wrong class or skipping one opportunity will somehow ruin your entire future. But realistically, most of us are just trying to keep up with everything at once and hoping we remember what day it is. This stage of life is not about having everything figured out; it is about figuring it out as you go.
You are allowed to change your mind. You are allowed to switch your major, drop a class or realize that the five-year plan you made at 18 does not actually make sense anymore. If anything, it would be a little strange if you stayed exactly the same throughout college. The whole point is to grow, even if that growth comes with a few questionable choices and at least one class you wish you could forget.
Something I have been trying to remind myself of is that not everything needs to be productive. Not every second of your day has to be used wisely or efficiently. Sometimes your most important plan is getting coffee with a friend and talking about nothing for way longer than you meant to. Those moments might seem small, but they are usually the ones you end up remembering the most.
There is also so much pressure to always be working toward something bigger: internships, resumes, networking, etc. It can feel like you are constantly behind, no matter how much you are doing. But, constantly focusing on what is next can make you completely miss what is happening right now. College is not just about building a future; it is also about actually living your life while you are here, even if that includes throwing together a random dinner and calling it a success.
So if you find yourself overwhelmed, take a second to pause. Go outside, take the long way to class, text your friend back or just sit and do nothing without feeling guilty about it. You are not running out of time, even if it sometimes feels like you are.
At the end of the day, you are a college student, not someone who is supposed to have everything perfectly together. You are learning, adjusting and doing the best you can. And that is more than enough.