We are currently in one of the most stressful and hectic times of the semester and needless to say, we are all pretty stressed out. You can see it everywhere and on everyone’s faces. Time is quickly winding down for the semester and as the amount of weeks get less and less, it seems that our stress levels increase about tenfold per week. Two major things causing stress? Scheduling and finals.

Scheduling has been happening over the course of the past few weeks and I’m sure we can all agree that it’s been an awful time, especially for underclassmen. You have to figure out what classes you need to take, what classes you want to take, and then what classes you can even get into. You have to schedule a meeting with your advisor(s) prior to scheduling (or at least you’re supposed to). Those aren’t even the worst parts. On your day of scheduling, you have to be up at 6 a.m. to schedule, which means that you actually have to be up before that. Many classes fill up immediately. Scheduling is essentially the college version of The Hunger Games, except the odds are rarely in our favor.

Finals are coming up too, and aren’t they a pleasant time? Some classes don’t have finals during finals week, or finals at all, but most classes do. There are some people who are lucky enough to have all of their finals spread out over multiple days, and then there are some unfortunate souls who are forced with multiple finals on the same day. As finals creep closer and closer though, you can’t let them get to you. They may be weeks away, but it’s never a bad time to start studying for your finals. You can even organize a study group with other people from your class. If you have three finals scheduled on one day as well, you can actually go about getting one of those finals switched to a different time.

Stress is a purely natural thing that happens to all of us, but the key is to not let it get to you. It’s not always easy and at times, it can overwhelm you. One of the great things about college though, is that you’re rarely ever alone in a struggle. There is almost always at least one other person on campus who knows how you’re feeling and is willing to help out in anyway. When it comes to the two main stressors, all of campus knows how you’re feeling. If you missed a class during scheduling, there are at least a dozen other people who feel the same pain. You are not alone.

This is all coming from a person who has epilepsy driven by stress. If you let the stress get to you, bad things can happen. Take strides to learn how to manage your stress and you’ll feel so much better. If you do need extra assistance though, the Student Services Center does have a counseling center with counselors who are here to help, as well as your advisors. Don’t let the stress get to you, you’re far from alone.