Are you one of those people who can say school has played a major role in becoming who you are? Have academics and succeeding in school been such a huge part of your life that the thought of failure makes you physically sick? Do you believe that GPA is forever and you’ll do whatever it takes to get that A? If so, you’re not alone.

I myself have been this way for as long as I can remember. Getting anything less than a C wasn’t acceptable in my book even though my mom told me just to do my best. I knew my best was never going to be a C. I was better than that. After I transferred to my second college, I was determined to keep my grades up because to me, your grades were who you were. If I was getting A’s and B’s, I would be seen as intelligent and successful. If I was getting C’s and D’s I was a failure. Up until this semester, I believed that every single day and worked hard to validate my thoughts. This semester, however, has completely changed my thinking.

There will always be difficult classes but as a junior and senior, expect some of the hardest. I have one class that I study for most days out of the week and even on weekends. It’s constantly on my mind no matter what. If I want to go to the gym, go on a date, or even make a run to Walmart, this class is always on my mind. Because of this, it is easy to say that I study 20 – 30 hours per week just for this class. That’s more than my other 3 classes combined. I do everything possible in order to understand the material and yet I’m not succeeding according to my definition of success. There is a good chance that I will get a C even though I study like crazy for this class. This has made me feel like a failure and has me really doubting my future goals of being a Physicians Assistant.

Recently I got a test back that sent me over the edge. I thought I did well on it only to have it not meet the professors “standards.” My overall answer wasn’t correct but I had more than enough work to constitute me getting some points. I got none. After class ended, I called my mom, crying my eyes out and telling her everything that was happening in this class. I told her how I studied like crazy and was working so hard to be successful in this class but that I was most likely going to get a C. In typical mom fashion, she got defensive and was ready to email the professor herself until she realized that doing that could come back on me. My mom told me to go to my advisor about this issue to see what could be done, so I did just that.

An hour or so passed, I was getting ready to write this article, and I had what one would call an epiphany. My grades and my GPA do not make me who I am. I am not my grades or my GPA. I'm not saying it's going to be easy to believe that, but it's so true. I am so much more than that. I am caring, intelligent, honest, funny, beautiful, and I can do anything I set my mind to. My grades do not determine who loves me and who my friends are. My grades don’t affect the fact that I am able to get up every morning and live to see another day. My grades don’t affect the fact that God put me on this Earth, He gave me a purpose to be here, and He loves me. My grades don’t affect the fact that I’m a good person and would do anything to help someone. I am not my grades and you are not your grades.

If you're sitting here reading this and not believing me, look how far you have come. Everybody has hardships in their lives, and I know for a fact that you didn't get through them because of your grades or how well you did on a test. You are more than your grades. So when you're in a pickle like I am, don't give up. Keep trying and keep on studying your butt off. Know though, that if you don't get the grade you want or the GPA you want, that is OK because you are more than your grades!