Pressure

In chemistry this week we've been looking at Equilibrium in reactions. An equilibrium reaction is one that acts in both directions until a point where both the forward and backward reactions are equal (until an 'Equilibrium' is achieved). Certain factors can affect equilibrium such as temperature, pressure or concentration that cause the equilibrium to shift to counteract the change it experiences (this, as a side note, is called Chatalier's Principle). One thing that rung with me, in my strange quest to compare my life or the events in it to whatever I can in a strange metaphor, was the action of pressure on an equilibrium reaction. When you increase the pressure on one side of an equilibrium reaction, it causes the equilibrium to shift and (in the example we were doing) more product from the reaction is formed.
My life lately seems to be increasing in pressure. The workload that I have never stops increasing, the demands of my work are becoming greater as time runs short to exams and concepts for work aren't clicking into place, there's drama among my friends at times and, recently, my boyfriend's been kicked out of college so it's going to become an effort on both sides to see each other. So all of this is having an emotional impact on me and, honestly, the other day I was prepared to just give up and drop everything because I'd had enough. Enough of college, enough of a life where I seem to do nothing but work, I wanted out.
Somewhere in my head, though, I knew better. As much as I wanted out, as much as I knew I wanted to just drop everything, I knew that this was just a part of what I had to go through to get to where I want to be in life. Sometimes the road in life is difficult and there'll be a lot of times where you just want to give in and go in a different, easier direction. As easy as that direction might be, though, it might not be the one that'll lead you to your dreams. If I had quit college then I would've been very, very, VERY unlikely to ever achieve my dreams of Medicine. So, if for no other reason than that aspiration, I decided to grit my teeth, whine, bitch and moan all I liked but, ultimately, just get on with it.
How does that relate in the slightest to equilibrium and pressure, you ask? Well, for me, to do what I had to do, I had to shift the equilibrium in my life. Lately I've been putting in a decent amount of effort into everything and getting a decent amount back, but lately (and for the next few months, thanks to exams) I'm going to have to put in a hell of a lot more effort to see minimal instant rewards. I'm going to have to shift the equilibrium of my life in order to cope with what I'm doing and be happy. It won't be easy, I'm not under any illusion that it will be, but bolster on I shall until I reach my dynamic equilibrium and I'm getting as good as I'm giving. When that day comes, I'm sure that all of my hard work will have been well worth it and I'm sure that can go for everyone if you persevere for long enough at something you really want.