When school and extracurriculars pick up around this time of the semester, we notice ourselves feeling more stressed and having trouble deciding how to distribute our time. It feels like something must go.
We don’t want our grades to drop… or our self-care and exercise routines. But for me—and likely many of us—the first thing I tend to deprioritize when I get busy is my platonic friendships. It’s hard to admit, and it’s something I noticed about myself in the past month.
As college students, it can be tricky to coordinate times that match our friends’ schedules, and thus, may avoid the extra effort. We might justify to ourselves that it’s only for a few weeks and that it doesn’t matter in the long run. However, when we make a habit of putting our friends on the back burner, then how can we expect them to prioritize our friendship when it matters most to us?
Missing a friend’s birthday celebration because you need to study or not being there for them when they’re feeling low will weaken your relationship. However, worst and unfortunately most common friendship offense is not allowing your friends to be there for you when you most need it.
If you are feeling stressed because of an overloaded schedule and you haven’t expressed your feelings to a close friend, I would argue you’re doing a disservice to your friend. A person who chooses to be friends with you is more than happy to be there for you and help you through times of need.
College is a time full of ups and downs and so much happens in one month, let alone a semester. If you prioritize friendships during this time in your life, you will likely build some of the most special relationships you have ever been a part of. This is because allowing your friends to be there for you in the stressful periods will build the trust necessary to also celebrate the super high highs.
As finals sit just around the corner, it can be one of the most turbulent points of the semester. Even if for just one or two hours every week, dedicate the time towards these loved ones. We have grown so much this semester, so give yourselves some recognition, and use this time to celebrate the end of an era.
If you’re reading this, do yourself a favor. Call up a friend who you haven’t spoken to in a while and tell them how grateful you are to have them in your life, tell them what is special about them, and tell them how much you love them. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t talked to this friend in months or a year.
Friendships are one of the most important entities of our life and learning to be a better friend will undoubtably lead us to living more joyful and fulfilling lives.