After three years of being in FHS, it’s finally come around to haunt us all. Prom is rapidly approaching, which begs all the questions: 

“Who am I going to ask out?!” 

“How am I going to set up my promposal?!” 

And one more…  

“What if I don’t get a date?” 

Now, I’m not going to front and say I don’t concern myself with those same questions, as I’m currently stressing heavily on the subject as I’m writing this. Prom is a BIG deal for all of us, or at least most of us; it’s a defining night according to high school culture. I mean look at all those high school movies and shows; it’s everywhere! 

With prom comes tremendous pressure from both sides of the spectrum, with the guys and girls alike saying and asking themselves similar questions, whether it be if you’re going to go with that girl from math class, or finally muster up the courage to ask that girl that you think is way out of your league. For myself, I’m stuck on two things; “How can I make my promposal, if I even do one, just perfect?” and then “Who am I going to ask, and what if they reject me and I end up just there, alone?” Which in my eyes, I just think, “This is really no big deal,” but then I contradict myself later and make it a BIG DEAL. I was already stressing a month into the school year.

Promposals are happening left and right, and it’s easy to be left in the dust amongst your peers as people find prom dates and connect with one another. Prom also can really crush some spirits too and can get super personal quick. You can ask someone and then BAM, instant rejection, which can crush you just a tad, since it could have been someone you have had a long-time interest in. Prom is a double edged sword really, that can be the absolute best night of your life or can be one of your most scary nights of all time, or even sad depending on the situation. 

Me personally, as I look ahead to prom, it just exposes my insecurities and makes me question my level of confidence when interacting with someone in that light. I feel that prom can go so many ways and I have to fit the mold with looking “decent.” Prom in my eyes has made me think of someone I could grow distant with or grow closer with depending on the response I get and the months leading up to it. It also makes it a priority for once to fit along my other peers that I never really tried to fit in with because it just wasn’t my style or preference. Guys will take their dates and dance with them until the night comes to a close and the girls just want the same thing in some respects; both sides can want it to be an absolute rave or a picture perfect night like you see in the movies, but it all depends on the personal motive you have. You can want the night to further your relationship with your date or even if you’re going with a friend, further that into something more. Prom is a big deal full of social challenges and possible consequences for both parties. This gets me thinking about how we can possibly keep up with it all. We want this night to be picture perfect with no problems or concerns stirring into our heads as all we want to do is enjoy ourselves as our days at FHS finally start to come to a close. With our time left in high school getting shorter and shorter, that’s the whole point of it, isn’t it? Have a perfect night, with your perfect date or group and dance the night away with not a care in the world. 

For all of us and for myself, if you’re dealing with prom stress or starting to, don’t stress it at all. Go with the flow of prom and deal with the problems as they come and at your own pace. Prepare for that night and don’t let the pressure get to your head all that much, and just remember it’s about YOU and no one else. So, have fun preparing instead of questioning insecurities or trying to make the best promposal to show everyone else up, just have fun with it, and make it something to remember for you and those around you (positively, of course!). But seriously, with all that prom pressure, what’s the deal?!?

* photo via Google Images under the Creative Commons license