Finals week comes around and we push through to get to that moment when we're all packed up and ready to go back to the homeland for a month. It's a very exciting time and we're all anxious to get away from school and back with our families and old friends for a few weeks. But...then we get home and instead of stress-free relaxation, new struggles arise. Here's eight struggles of being home for winter break.

1. The timing of your arrival...and your friend's arrivals.

Some colleges start finals right after the return from Thanksgiving break. Some colleges start finals December 21st. Either your friends are home weeks before you while you're stuck at school or vise versa. Regardless, both are pretty frustrating.

2. Family reunions

You probably haven't seen your families in a while. Maybe you saw them on Thanksgiving or maybe you celebrated with the other side of the fam. Either way, you're bound to get smothered with questions about school, friends, relationships, what you're planning on doing after undergrad, where you see yourself in ten years, what time you took a shit this morning, etc.

3. Doctors appointments

For those of us who attend school over an hour away, you're most likely to have to schedule in all of your doctors appointments over your winter break. AKA every other college student is doing the same thing so it's a struggle for you to get an appointment, or you've got three appointments in one day the day before you go back to school - one where you have to pee in a cup for a STD test because WHOA you're in college now and better safe than sorry...and another that you have to uncomfortably sit in the kid's chairs in the waiting room because you still go to the pediatrician.

4. Work

You're either working like a dog at your old job because your boss saves the hours for all the kids like you coming home from school...or you're without a job and money because you're only home for two weeks. Both kinda suck.

5. Living at home

Unless you live at home all year-round, the transition over winter break is a tough one. You've just spent four months on your own and you're back to being under your parent's roof. We love our parents and are so happy to be back, but it takes a little getting used to...especially when they tell you to clean your room every time they see a speck of dirt on the floor.

6. Downtime

You're either so busy catching up with friends and family, going to doctors appointments and working, or sitting on your ass all day at home. The busy ones want downtime and most excitement that the not-so-busy ones experience is a trip outside to get the mail.

7. Awkward encounters

This is pretty self-explanatory. The mall, the movies, the grocery store, the nail salon...you name it, the person from high school that you don't want to see is probably there.

8. The timing of your departure...and your friend's departures.

Just like the arrivals, you're either stuck at home until the end of January while your friend leaves right after New Year's, or vise versa. Regardless, it sucks because you're either home for two more weeks alone because your only friend is back at school, or you're leaving home too soon to go back and do school again (ew). "Hey when are you leaving? January 3rd? Oh ok cool I leave the 22nd pray for me."