Second Semester Slump: How to Escape Burnout
Maiya Reese
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We’ve all experienced the infamous gloom of the second semester of school. The cold, cloudy skies, the bitter wind that stings your face and ruins your hair when you dare to step outside, the endless cycles of homework and sports practices…for most, the early months of the year are shadowed by a sense of hopelessness that paints the whole world gray. Life feels so overwhelming you just want to hide in bed and hibernate for the winter while binge-watching Netflix and eating take-out.
This depressing, bleak-winter stage is something everyone experiences, and rest assured: it will soon be over. In the meantime, there are many practical ways to escape the “second semester slump.”
Go to bed on time. This is a major aspect of our health that everyone, including myself, tends to overlook. Poor sleep influences us negatively and is a major contributor to our motivation and emotions. According to Columbia University, “In the U.S., more than 70% of teenagers do not get enough sleep.” When students don’t get the 8-10 hours of sleep that they need, “physical and cognitive development, emotional, hormonal, and mental health are all at stake” (“The Impact of Good Sleep Hygiene”). Though it may be tempting to stay up late tackling all your homework assignments, it will actually be more beneficial to your productivity if you use that time to sleep. Therefore, I challenge you to go to bed in a timely manner every night for a week. Aim for eight hours of sleep. Do you notice a difference?
Try to get some sun every day. Just being exposed to sunlight for ten minutes every day can do wonders for your health. Cleveland Clinic states, “Sunlight is the main way that your body gets its vitamin D — so much so that it’s sometimes called the ‘sunshine vitamin’!” Vitamin D helps boost your body’s immune system and sleeping patterns. It also activates the pineal gland, a part of the brain that produces serotonin, or the “feel-good hormone” (“The Health Benefits of Sunshine”). So simply going out in the sun can make you feel happier!
Motivate yourself to do homework. You’ve finally gotten home from a long day of school, sports practice, and work, and now you’re expected to do homework? To help with this negative mindset, try some of these methods to motivate yourself to do your homework.
Make a to-do list of all your homework so you can clearly see what you need to work on.
Fix yourself a snack or a yummy drink (a cup of tea, a smoothie) to enjoy while working.
Find a 25/5 Pomodoro study ambience on YouTube to keep you focused.
Here are some of my favorites. Nature Ambience. Rory Gilmore. Lofi Beats.
Reward yourself when you get your work done. A drink from Hebrews, FaceTiming a friend, or a video game session are all great ways to keep yourself motivated, because once you complete your work, you get a treat.
Find a hobby that you enjoy. It’s a good thing to be able to relax and do something that you love to do. Whether it be video-gaming, reading, exercising, photography, blogging, or dancing, finding something in life that you can look forward to can help improve your mood and motivate you. Here’s a link featuring some cool hobbies you might be interested in.
Though this gloomy time of the year may seem eternal, it won’t last forever. Spring is almost here, it’s slowly warming up outside, and you have great things to look forward to! Just keep persevering and don’t give up! You’re doing great!
Works Cited:
"How Much Sunshine Do You Need Every Day?" Cleveland Clinic,
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/how-much-sunshine-you-need-daily. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
"Teaching Teens and Their Parents About the Impact of Good Sleep Hygiene on Heart Health."
ColumbiaDoctors, www.columbiadoctors.org/news/teaching-teens-and-their-parents-impact-good-sleep-hygiene-heart-health. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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