It took getting to the breaking point, but I’ve finally learned my lesson.

I think.

With some level of consistency, there are dark circles under my eyes, the remaining hairs on my head fade from their normal color to grey, and I’m pretty sure a 20-something-year-old isn’t supposed to have stress-induced heart palpatations.

Yes, I really am stubborn enough that it took all that for me to finally realize, just as I type these words, actually, that I need to make a change.

Why do you care? Why does it matter? Because I get the feeling that I’m far from the only college student, here or elsewhere, that has these problems to some degree.

I hope to help.

This semester, I’m in 19 credit hours. I devote more than 30 hours a week to the newspaper you’re reading. I also work a part-time job about 15 hours a week to help pay the bills.

All of this is on top of the personal commitments we all make and have to hold.

If this kind of schedule and situation sounds familiar, I suggest making a change.

I know I plan to.

As noted, I’m a pretty stubborn guy. But I’ve finally realized that there’s no shame in refusing to take on more than you can.

Put as simply as possible, it’s unhealthy. In a few ways. Don’t be like me and convince yourself you won’t feel the effects of the stress placed on your shoulders.

It catches up. Eventually, you’ll be physically, mentally and emotionally drained.

I firmly believe this kind of neglect for  personal well-being is what leads to acts of violence and agression that our nation has been exposed to recently.

This kind of lifestyle can make a person do things they wouldn’t normally dream of.

I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that, in extreme cases, such neglect of mental health can lead to the kind of heinous acts we saw in Newtown, Conn.

Don’t ignore yourself. Don’t try to be a super hero.

Just as people use the gym to care for the physical self, society needs to embrace the idea of a “mental gym,” if you will, for people to care for the mental self.

And old cliche rings true:

It’s a slippery slope.

Don’t let yourself fall.