College is right around the corner, and for most returning students, one word comes to mind: stress. Whether it's stress over money or grades, all college students feel a sense of overwhelming anxiety when they think about returning to school. Yes, there is still the excitement of getting a new and typically better dorm and being reunited with all the friends you made the year before, but stress always seems to cloud over those excited feelings and wash them away.

College students have a lot on their plates financially, mentally, physically and emotionally. Our whole childhood and adolescence, we are being prepared for college. It's a lot to handle for someone in their early 20s. A good number of students cannot handle the stress that college brings and end up quitting. Because of that, college students are looked at differently. College students are placed on a pedestal, and everyone is watching, waiting for them to fall.

I think that this pressure that college students are under needs to be relieved. This "preparation" throughout high school includes horrifying statistics about dropout rates nailed into the brains of teenagers. High schoolers are told to do what they love but not something that isn't practical, to follow dreams but only dreams that will make you a living. This "preparation" is no more than scaring teens before they do something that is scary enough on its own. As if fear is what makes a person successful, not the thing that brings you down.

Because of all this negative preparation for college, I think a college student goes into it thinking he or she is going to fail. Because of these high expectations, college students set unattainable standards for themselves. It is great to have high standards, but when they leave no room for imperfection and flaws, that is when "stress" takes a whole new meaning.

So, college students everywhere, you are #betterthanyouseem for many reasons. One big reason is because you can call yourself a college student. You got to college in the first place. Whether you come back as a sophomore, junior or senior, it is a brilliant thing that you made the choice to pack up your things and return to the place that causes you so much stress. For that, give yourself a pat on the back.

Student loans are not something that have to bring you down. If you have loans, you are #betterthanyouseem because you are giving yourself the responsibility to pay them later in life. You are believing in yourself. You are trusting yourself with that burden. Believing in yourself is not an easy thing, so for that, give yourself a pat on the back.

You are #betterthanyouseem for every all-nighter, study session and party missed to study for that exam. Even if the exam comes back as a C instead of an A, you made the effort to do your best, and you will do better next time. For that, give yourself a pat on the back.

We graduate and are forced to decide what we want to do for the rest of our lives at 18 years old. Not only is that not fair, it is not logical. Eighteen-year-olds make the wrong decisions every day because they are barely adults, who don't need to be making life decisions. So, if you are an undecided major, you are #betterthanyouseem because you have the courage to wait a year or two to find perspective and make the decision when you are ready. That said, if you have declared a major, you are also #betterthanyouseem because you have a different kind of courage. You took a chance on yourself. You know what you want to be and you're not letting anything stop you from doing what you love. For the undecided and the declared, pat yourself on the back.

College is not as black and white as we are taught to believe. It is messy and colorful. It is unique for everyone. College isn't about coloring in the lines, it's about messing up and figuring out how to make the picture work despite your mistakes. Because of that, college teaches us the best lesson of all: Life is not black and white, nor should it be. Life should be as colorful and beautiful as you can make it. A perfect life is not an interesting one. Perfect paintings make the most scared artists. If you have made mistakes and messed up, it only gives you the opportunity to get back up and try again, so for that, pat yourself on the back. You are #betterthanyouseem and more than you see.