Less than a month ago, we were waking up in the bed we grew up in, having coffee with our parents, and making our way to our part-time, minimum wage summer jobs. During this time, the occasional thought of going back to school would float through our minds, but never the thought of it coming so quickly.

Three months of the year are spent at home with home-cooked meals, family surrounding you, and a smile on your face. Nine months of the year are spent studying, sleeping on what seems to be a combination of metal and dull cardboard, strangers surrounding you in a class you don’t seem to belong, and a smile that has not seen a good night’s rest since it left it’s home.

The stress – the want, the need – to achieve outstanding grades, grades that are already above average, but only seem average to you. The yearning to do better than the person next to you, to be the very best in your class. The obligation to participate in campus organizations. The nights of “just a few more minutes of studying,” that don’t end until the sun comes up.

The sleepless nights of wondering if you could have worded something you said that day differently. The nights where you constantly ask yourself if the assignment you handed in was good enough. The rest you don’t get when you lay in bed and ask yourself if you’re the only one who feels this way. Why do I have a knot in my stomach, and a lump in my throat? Why, throughout all of my achievements, am I lying here completely unsatisfied, like I didn’t do enough today. These are the feeling of a college student.

We’re working hard in college so that we’re able to work hard in the “real word,” as they call it. But, isn’t this the real world? Does it ever become fulfilling enough? If this isn’t the real world, does that mean this doesn’t count? Why push so hard if we’re not already in the real world?

According to BestColleges.com, one in every four students has a diagnosable illness. 40% of students do not seek help. 80% are overwhelmed by their responsibilities, and 50% struggle in school due to their angst.

Eighty percent of students are overwhelmed with their responsibilities. In college, you choose your responsibilities – be your classes, professors, or your campus involvement.

Eighty percent of students should not be completely overwhelmed with their own responsibilities. Our brains have a way of tricking us into thinking we are unable to handle any amount of responsibility. The truth is, being a student can be overwhelming, and that’s okay. But, perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad if we were overwhelmed with responsibilities we wanted to take part in.

College is a chance to explore a world outside of the one you know. An opportunity to pick and choose courses that appeal to you so that you can find exactly what you love.

Life is overwhelming. Doing what you love? Not so much.