Your life is constantly on the move, shifting from school, to work, to trying to keep up a social life and balance priorities. As an adult, you've become quite malleable and learned to maneuver many difficult situations. Yet, we don't give ourselves credit where credit is due; before you have a breakdown about failing Physics class, take a moment to look at all the reasons why you should be proud of yourself.
There is statistically no way you can survive on your own- yet, you do.
According to Living Wage, the required income you need to live in Michigan is $20,912 before taxes. An average adult making minimum wage pulling 40-hours-a-week will generally acquire $16,320 annually. There is a gap of over $4,000 stopping us from meeting our required total- but we're still here, aren't we? Despite the flaw in our cost-of-living analysis, college students still manage to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies. We all struggle some months, but we always manage to make ends meet and keep our heads high. (Oh, and this isn't even including student loans!)
We're still always there to support our loved ones.
We may forget to do laundry some weeks and the dishes will pile high, but we still manage to be there when we're needed- and somewhat put-together, too! We don't miss a birthday or forget to spend a holiday with our folks, no matter how pressed our time is. Even if it's just for a moment, the time we spend around family is always sacred. It's nice when we can slow the hours just long enough to forget all the bad stuff.
We're constantly running on fumes.
We all have those nights where work runs late and we still want to party, but it's on over-drive for college students. According to the University Health Center, the average college student gets 6-6.9 hours of sleep per night, about 2-3 hours less than what we need. What does that mean? That we're the ones grabbing a coffee at 11 o'clock at night and stock-piling 5-hour Energy drinks. The fact we keep sanity at all is a miracle.
Around one-third of us are depressed.
A study by College Re-Entry suggests an epidemic of depression on adults, especially those between 18-24. Depression is defined as something that intervenes with every-day life, meaning most of us trudge through our hardest days feeling miserable. Besides being in our prime, we're also at one of the most stressful stages of life. We've learned to hide pain behind a painted smile, but it's important to hone in every now and then to regroup our minds.
There's a nagging desire to do more.
You can vote, you can drink; now it's time to make your mark on the world. In every class we take and every cold semester, we come one step closer to our careers. And that's scary. The pressure to seal your fate and choose a career is very real. Our paycheck is never big enough, and the hours in the day are never long enough but we still manage to find balance.
We learned to handle finances the hard way.
Whether your parents taught you or you went in blind, we all know a thing or two on finances now. We know that credit cards can be a life-saver or demise, we know that we have to make our Credit Score high if we ever want to own anything, and many of us learned that Cable is overrated compared to Internet. We all had that moment of weakness where we bought that new TV because we got fired, or splurged on new pants so our freshly-single butt can strut, and that's okay. Don't let your mistakes eat you alive because you're still learning every day.
Some of us have children to support.
Any college mommy knows juggling work and school is an impossible feat. Babysitters flake, family members have lives too, and nobody has to money to afford daycare every day. Instead of focusing on all that you wish you could give them, focus on how much better you will be financially and mentally down the road. Even though it may not seem perfect, your child will always look highly on you for your selflessness. Don't let the bad days ruin them all. This world is whatever you make it to be, so put your best foot forward and remember to smile every now and then.
Sources:
http://livingwage.mit.edu/states/26
http://collegereentry.org/depression?gclid=CNPq-dD3tc8CFQyPaQodn3kMsg
