Date: August 22nd, 2018 4:30 PM
Author: Cerebral magenta lay karate
https://shootfromthehippie.wordpress.com/
As many of you know, I’m a senior at Mizzou in the throes of the Journalism school. I am also probably the worst perpetrator when it comes to romanticizing overexertion, particularly academic overexertion.
I love the Missouri School of Journalism, but what I love more is how much it has prepared me to be a totally kick ass journalist. But let’s talk about a class that everyone in the J school (save the Strat Comm kids) have to take. Reporting.
I took Reporting first semester of my junior year of college. As per the syllabus, a student in Reporting is expected to dedicate 20-25 hours per week (yes, you read that correctly) on this class alone. You’re also required to take a total of 12 credit hours to be a full time student at the University, so add 3 more full time classes to that. If you want to “set yourself apart,” when it comes to applying for jobs after graduation, you’re expected to participate in extracurricular activities, and probably have a job and volunteer hours in order to show that you have a strong work ethic. Oh, and don’t forget about the social life! Networking is everything, folks.
I lost 10 pounds that semester. I lived off 4 hours of sleep, coffee, and a very unstable eating routine. When I got home for winter break, I would wake up in the middle of the night in a panic because I was so sure that there was something I should be attending to other than sleeping. After all, that was my routine for the last 4 months.
I’m not the only person who has this type of experience in the J school. Or at Mizzou. Or at any University, for that matter.
The point is that I chose my academics over self care like so many other students in similar positions do. But the fact of the matter is this: I didn’t actually have a choice. There simply are not enough hours in the day, week, or even year to be able to do everything that is expected of a “good” college student to do and simultaneously practice self care.
And despite the fact that I was working myself half to death, I still got commended for all my “hard work.” Because people who overwork themselves are the objects of admiration amongst their family, friends and peers. Because that’s what we’re taught – that work/school always comes first. That being the best always comes first.
Now, of course, that’s not what we’re told. If I had a dime for every time someone told me that my “health always comes first,” I would have enough money to drop out of school and live comfortably for a very long time.
So, yes, we’re told that our health comes first. But when we get penalized for missing an attendance class when our body refuses to wake up to an alarm because we are so fucking tired, we’re taught that our health comes after our academics.
When we fail that test which is 1/4 of our overall grade because we chose sleep or relaxation over studying just ONE time, we’re taught that our health comes after our academics.
When we get berated by a boss for asking for a day off because we just want to spend some time with our families or friends, we’re taught our health comes after our work.
I could go on for a while – in fact, I could go on forever – but you all understand this feeling more than my words could ever do it justice.
And we, as a society, romanticize this. How fucked up is that? The amount of “jokes” I hear from kids my age insinuating that, essentially, death is a better alternative than how we’re living disgusts me. But what disgusts me even more is that those kind of jokes resonate with people.
It makes me sick when I hear things like “Oh I didn’t have time to eat because I’ve been too busy today,” or,
“I had a test today so I pulled an all-nighter last night,” or,
“I don’t even have time for a proper mental breakdown!”
Really, guys? Really? What kind of messages are we sending to each other? Since when have our health, happiness, and interpersonal relationships taken a back seat to that 4.0 GPA, or that extra line on the ‘Work’ section of your resume?
Instead of romanticizing sleepless nights, breakdowns, and mental/physical turmoil, let’s start celebrating bubble baths. Movie nights with friends. A night in with your favorite book. A proper breakfast. Less time worrying.
Tl;dr – Take that mental health day. If you think you need it, you do.
(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4058283&forum_id=2#36665070)