It is widely known that most law students enter law school emotionally stable, much like the rest of the general population. It is also widely known, however, that soon after law students begin their journey, a high number of students may start to experience anxiety, depression, hostility, isolation – a large host of emotional problems, which can also lead to chemical dependency.
Emotional problems will likely hinder one’s academic success.
The best thing is to keep true to your inter-relationships and intra-relationships , as these provide the necessary support and encourage growth. Unfortunately, because of time constraints and the need to become involved and stay on top, law school inadvertently allows you to sever or at least hinder negatively most of these relationships.
Why does this occur?
A Narrow Definition of “Success”
Most people, in an attempt to measure success, determine that their resume must be filled with extra-curricular activities and their transcripts with high grades. Add to this the pressure to do well in securing high-end employment, and we often forget that we’ve lost touch with a special friend.
Many of us have heard the story over and over again that if you ask yourself whether you know who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, you wouldn’t know but to ask yourself someone who is close to your heart, you could easily name one. Both are successful in their own right but the way you measure success may need to be redefined if you are starting to lose touch with your loved ones.
YOUR INTER-CONNECTIONS
Your interconnections consist of your relationships with your loved ones – your family, friends and the surrounding community.
Often we lose touch during law school because of one or more of the following reasons:
a.) The amount of time required to study, do readings, and doing assignments
b.) The pre-occupation with “being in law school” and getting involved as much as possible
c.) The usage of constantly trying to find the best way out of a situation for both sides, as is taught by professors to answer many exams. The amount of stigma attached with being a “law student” and your tendency to “argue” may alienate those close to you
d.) The competitiveness between other students may lead to distrust even those you have come to trust with time
YOUR INTRA-CONNECTIONS
Your intraconnections consist of the relationship you have with yourself – in an intellectual, physical, emotional and spiritual way.
Emotional/Spiritual Drainage
Many times, because of the emphasis law school indirectly may place on grades, securing prestigious employment, and getting impressive credentials listed on your resume, law students may end up suppressing their feelings and caring less about the world around them. This is especially true because our value systems may always be questioned when learning how to write the perfect exam answer – considering both sides. In effect, one can often lose touch with his or her emotional or spiritual self.
Lack of Physical Exercise
The tendency of law students to run out of time for regular physical exercise is quite well-known. In fact, most law students gain weight after the first two months of law school. Initially this may seem okay but evidence has suggested strongly that exercise helps relieve emotional stress and gives law students a break from the pressures they may associate with being in law school.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
-Manage your time wisely – make a schedule if you have to (refer to ‘Time Management’ handout).
-Set aside a time slot in which to talk to your loved ones, be it a good friend and/or one of your family members. This could be during your “down time”, before you go to sleep or on weekend mornings perhaps.
-Realizing that you are a person before a “law student” – check in time to time with how you feel about certain things and see if your opinions have changed. It is not necessarily a bad thing that your opinions have changed but keep your mind open to suggestions made by your close ones that you are changing. They may be noticing something that you are not.
-Getting a low mark, relative to your expectations, is not the end of the world (refer to ‘Dealing with Your Grades’ handout). Remember, everyone around you got into law school for a lot of the same reasons you did. You are surrounded by talented people just like yourself. Moderate the expectations you have for yourself.
-While thinking like a lawyer is great, realize that thinking like a lawyer is a legal skill, not a life skill. It may be helpful in applying strategies and trying to decipher real-life situations based on our skills in analyzing problems and situations, in some cases relying on your own values and instincts may be best.
-Try to see if you are starting to become more irritable or aggress toward people – if you are, think back to what made you mad and check if it used to make you mad before. Keep yourself in check constantly.
-As law students, we already have a competitive edge in us. We went through a formal application process to get into law school. Many job interviews we go to are called a “competition”. But realize that if you make a list of all of things that “went wrong,” these will seem small relative to maintaining a healthy lifestyle, having a small group of friends and families that you can talk to at any time, and being happy in general.