FOMO, also known as Fear Of Missing Out. This is an illness that we've all come down with at some point in our lives. For some, it's a disease that continues to wreak havoc on their every day life. FOMO is especially present during the freshman year of college (I'm looking at you class of 2020).

I remember the feeling myself, it was only a year ago that I was a freshman trying to pander through my residence halls looking for friends like they were going out of stock. This subconscious need to feel accepted by my peers kept me up all hours of the night and in a litany of locations. I was so afraid to miss out on absolutely anythin.; But in reality, what was I really missing out on?

Looking back at my freshman self, only a little over a year ago, I now understand that these seemingly important events that I refused to miss out on were not as big of a deal as I thought. Was a stupid conversation that seemed funny at the time really worth the three hours of extra sleep that I so desperately needed as a first time student? Was my personal time that I need as an introvert really worth being sacrificed over a dumb college party? No, it was not.

Making friends appears to be the most important part of coming to college, because it's drilled in our brains that we must fit in a community. However, the reality is that the friends and memories that you experience will come naturally.

Looking back at my freshman self, I enjoy the memories that came from my own natural desire to be sociable, instead of the forced and constructed interactions.

However, I can say that I learned a great lesson from my silly mistakes; doing you is the best thing you can do for yourself (who knew?).

FOMO will always find a way to rear it's ugly head in my life every once in a while. There will always be a small part of me that pushes me to force myself to stay in a situation where I'd rather be taking a nap or binge watching The Office.

Your gut will always be right in these situations, so don't be afraid to step away from a situation if you're not 100% into it. When you're beginning college, you're getting to a point in your life where it just isn't necessary to waste time doing things that don't make you fully happy.

Miss out sometimes. I promise that your most cherished moments will be times when you never even had to question your desire to stay.