First, let me say what this is not. It is not a denial of laziness, nor is it a petition for professors to limit the amount of work I have on my plate each week. It is not a attempt to cultivate pity, nor try and make myself out as a martyr for simply going through with my education. I understand that the work I go through in college each week is precisely what I signed up for each semester, and I know that there are many people who do the same that I do alongside a full time job, raising a family, and so on.

Over the past few weeks, after speaking to my friends and through my own experiences, I have come to the following conclusion: I am not unmotivated during the weekends when I sleep for twelve hours a night, am not able to drag myself out of bed until far past noon, and find it hard to focus on anything. I'm not lazy when I push off an assignment to do the night before, and I certainly have not been letting work pile up when I feel so behind with each day that passes. Instead, I'm burnt-out.

What do I mean by this? I mean that six out of seven days a week, I get up early, go to bed late, skip meals, and force myself to sit in the same place for hours on end to do homework. By "do homework," I mean to say that I actively read through textbook pages, write essays and papers, take notes on readings, and study for tests.

Taking into consideration that, on average, I set aside about two hours a day to sit with a friend during a meal, work some nights for about two hours, and ensure that I get about five hours of sleep per weeknight, I find it safe to say that I spend anywhere from 14 to 17 hours a day in class, doing homework, or obsessing over the amount of homework and studying I have left to do. As I mentioned earlier, there are some days - mostly over the weekend - when I can hardly find the energy to crawl out of bed, let alone sit at a desk and keep my nose in a book, so I'll maintain that these estimates apply most accurately for weekdays.

When, in the past, I put this into perspective, I assumed that I was an exception. How could one not feel run down to perpetual exhaustion when my brain is worked constantly with minimal rest, day in and day out? For years, I knew that I worked myself hard in school, to the point that I have driven myself to illnesses, ranging from colds and the flu, to mono for no reason other than a lack of sleep and too much work. I had accepted that I do not possess a limit for myself, and it has taken friends and family members to coach me through ways to breathe for even an hour when it came down to it.

But I'm not an anomaly. Other students I know and have met have similar stories. As students, we are stressed most days because of the upcoming due dates, tests, and a wave of commitments. We commit ourselves because we are told that we must. We must have a perfect GPA if we want to get a job, but we also need to be in perfect shape by going to the gym twice a day, everyday. But do not forget that we need a respectable social life with parties from Thursday to Saturday and a hangover on Sunday, and lest we forget clubs and sports for an extra resume booster that says that we're successful in something beyond that spotless GPA.

But at what risk? In the hierarchy of needs, you need to pick where to spend your time. Personally, I struggle to juggle about four friends, eating the proper amount of meals and sleeping, while also pushing for the grades. So, no, I'm not lazy when I sleep until noon during Spring Break and need to bribe myself with brownies in order to finish my homework. But I push myself to new limits each day, just as so many other students do. Yes, I signed up for this, but that does not mean that it's healthy.

To all those who are like me, just remember to stay hydrated, please do not forget to eat a meal, and you are doing great. I'm proud of you.