This article goes out to “That Girl.”
When you go out on weekends (or weekdays for that matter), do you generally not remember most of the night? Are you starting to ditch your classes because you were too hungover for your Friday morning discussion? Is your waistline starting to creep up due to satisfying your “drunchies” at Pita Pit?
Chances are, if you said yes to some of these questions above, you may be “That Girl.” You may be partying a little too much, and turning into, for lack of a better word, a hot mess.
Honestly, we all know it’s fine to go a little crazy in college. You are independent and are now making your own decisions. You are in a huge college town with tons of new people to meet and activities to do. If your craziness is getting out of hand, you may be affecting a little more than your image.
Grades
We’ve heard it time and time again. You are at college to get a degree. While we obviously aren’t going to be spending all of our free time studying, being caught up in classes is a good place to start. If you are too tired on Sunday to do your homework, you may get behind for the week. Eventually, this may spiral out of control down the road. Get a planner and get organized!
Class Attendance
Missing class every once in a while isn’t a bad thing. A majority of the time professors build in a few days of the semester where you can skip class and have it not affect your grade. These days are built in for a reason! Save these up for a day that you’re not feeling well, or to give yourself a longer weekend if you’re taking a trip home. Grab a water bottle and some ibuprofen and drag yourself to that 8am on Friday morning!
Health
If you are binge drinking, not getting enough sleep, and eating unhealthy foods, your body is going to pay for it. Physically, you will look worse. Who wants dark bags under their eyes and a beer belly? If you are one of the lucky ones who has a fast metabolism and doesn’t gain extra weight remember one thing: your body is like a machine. You have to maintain it and treat it correctly for it to work. Just because you aren’t gaining weight doesn’t mean you aren’t doing damage.
Get Involved
Is your schedule sleep, school, eat, party? This may be a reason you are going a little too crazy. If you find something you are really attached to on campus whether it be a job, a club, or a volunteering opportunity you may feel like you have a purpose. This way instead of going too crazy on Saturday night, if you know you have work at 10am the following morning, you may reconsider your decisions.
Remember, college is about having fun! Just manage your time between sleep, activities, school, and “going out,” and you will have a successful 4 years at UMass.
Also, one problem is a lot of times, “that girl” doesn’t even know she is “that girl.” If you have a friend that is spiraling down a bad path be sure you say something before it is too late!