<prompt> Human: I am conflicted as to how to pay down my student loans. I am currently trying to save up 6-8 months emergency fund. Currently have 3000 saved and plan on having 12,000 -16,000 by July of this year. My family seems to think I should relax a bit and pay my loans off over 9-10 year. The interest rate is 6.8. Am I stressing too much over these loans? I am so disciplined about my spending habits now that I have these loans that I feel guilty when I do spend money on my wife or self. I currently pay 400 a month and putting 1000 in savings. My goal is to wait on e fund to be funded for 8 months then reduce my monthly contributions to savings and put towards student loans. My work has a state retirement plan and match what I put in which is maxed. I realize these questions are answered on here everyday, but I feel I have reached a point where I am becoming obsessed with paying loans off. Any words of encouragement would be greatly appreciated. Also, I am posting from an iPhone so sorry for grammatical errors or run-on sentences in advance. Thanks.  <response>: My family seems to think I should relax a bit and pay my loans off over 9-10 year. The interest rate is 6.8Your family isnt giving you good financial advice here.Any extra you pay toward these loans gives you an instant 6.8 return on investment.You dont have to live like a hermit to pay these off as fast as possible, but paying more than the minimums will get you out of debt faster and save you money. Do you really want to be in debt for the next 10 years? Find a balance youre happy with. 