Maybe you should cut something out of your schedule

In the last decade, awareness about the importance of taking care of your mental health has gotten more attention than it ever has. Between dozens of articles, countless self-help books and even celebrities beginning to come out and discuss their own internal struggles, the stigma that surrounds mental health is slowly, but surely, diminishing.

Much of the literature and conversations about mental health take a good amount of time to discuss how to balance everything, plan effectively and make time to do the things that make you happy. Another part of the self-help craze that we tend to forget, however, is the importance of listening to yourself.

In Lori Gottlieb’s book, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist and Our Lives Revealed, she writes, “Don’t judge your feelings; notice them. Use them as your map. Don’t be afraid of the truth.” Sometimes, we’re just busy. But other times, things have gotten out of hand and we have too much on our plate. We at The Setonian, along with most other college students, I think can agree that we know when we have too much going on. It’s a feeling a lot of us get, but a lot of us don’t listen to.

There’s a ton of pressure now for college students to be the absolute best, in every situation. We see ourselves as lazy if we aren’t involved in a dozen clubs, have six internships by the time we graduate and get straight A’s. We push ourselves. This is sometimes a good thing, but it’s sometimes bad as well.

Part of taking care of yourself mentally is knowing when to step away from things. Self-care goes so far beyond face masks and a drink here and there with friends. Taking care of yourself is having the guts to say, “You know what – this is too much.” It takes guts to cut something out.

Cutting something out is a scary, but necessary step for many young people. Setting boundaries is important to do with others, but also with yourself.

The Voice is intended to best represent the collective opinion of The Editorial Board. It is written by The Setonian’s Editor-in-Chief.