I sat down this morning, pulled out my planner and felt like I was going to be sick. For the next two weeks, I have no free time at all. I have at least a test every day, multiple papers due, work, and even activities on the weekend that will keep my already limited schedule occupied. And I know I’m not alone.

As the semester progresses I know that many of you are becoming overwhelmed with the work load. College is hard to begin with, and then you have to balance everything else in your life on top of it. How are you expected to get good grades and also find enough time to sleep and join clubs? It seems impossible.

I’ve sat down plenty of times and thought to myself: what if I just give up? Wouldn’t it just be easier to throw in the towel?

The truth is, stress is bad for your health. When you’re stressed you feel tired all the time, have headaches, feel irritable, and frankly it’s just hard for you to focus on anything else. So wouldn’t it be easier to end all that stress, and quit?

I’ve quit many things in my life. I quit the piano, I quit soccer, and I quit dance. And you know what? I’m mad at myself for it.

Looking back on it, I seemed to have pretty decent reasons for quitting all three of those activities. I didn’t have time to practice the piano, I didn’t like my soccer coach, and dance was just becoming too difficult for me.

So I quit. I wiped my hands clean and walked away.

And I regret my decision every day.

Sure, quitting is easy. But if you think about the future, it’ll all be worth it. You don’t know how many times I’ve sat down at the piano and wished I was good enough to just start playing. Now I know that I’d never become Mozart or anything if i'd continued taking lessons, but that’s not the point. The point is that I’m jealous. I’m jealous of my little ten year-old self who could sit at the piano and read sheet music and make pounding her little fingers on the keys sound like a beautiful melody.

And although I’m upset with myself for quitting, I know that I can’t dwell on those decisions. I have to keep the past in the past and just move on. Instead, I can keep myself focused so I don’t end up quitting something I’ll regret in the future.

Next time you feel like quitting, sit down and have a little chat with yourself. Think about the future. Your classes may seem like a pain right now, but think about where you’ll end up once you graduate. Isn’t that why you’re at college in the first place? So that you can prepare for that dream job you’ve been fantasizing about since you were a child?

Hard work pays off. It may sound cliché, I know, but it does. A few more hours of studying here and there will really make a difference. Once you convince yourself that the work is worth it, it’ll be much easier and you’ll be less stressed.

As midterms (yikes!) quickly approach, just remember not to give up. As overwhelmed as you feel now, it will pass. And in ten years you won’t even remember why you were so stressed in the first place.

So don’t quit. Take my advice. I know I’m not exactly qualified to give such advice, but take it from one struggling college student. Whatever stress you’re feeling now, whether it’s school or something else, don’t let it consume your life. Take time now and then to put everything away and relax. You deserve a break.

And whatever you do, don’t give up!