Feeling exhausted from recycling the same day over and over while the weekend feels like a 30-minute break? Yeah, me too. When I used to imagine my college experience, I never planned on an entire year virtual and half a semester of it being hybrid, yet these are the cards that have been dealt. It’s hard to find a balance between school, work and socialization that’s limited by a pandemic and having a good mental health state.
Speaking from my own experience this semester has been one of the fastest yet longest, due to the fact it feels as if it never stops. Waking up to move from your bed to your desk for class and spending more than half the day staring at a computer screen, you start to feel like a zombie. Due dates have become the new calendar for me rather than an actual one, days blend together, it feels like I’m just trying to turn my stuff in to get past the week. Telling myself to “just get through the week” has grown old as it’s immediately followed by an almost exact replicated week.
Spring break for myself is usually a week to go home, hit the beach and just forget about Canvas for a week and all the stress of classes and future goals experienced typically. Taking away that spring break has led me to the most intense burnout I’ve ever had. Sure, getting off a week earlier could sound nice, but that middle break to feel something other than responsibility and school is what gets a lot of students through the rest of the semester. Spring break isn’t just a time for college students to go out and party, but a time to get a mental break from university life and refocus on why they’re doing what they’re doing.
I wanted to hear from some other students from different years and universities on their opinion towards no spring break this semester. The best platform I had available to use was Instagram where I posted a poll on the story calling attention to college students with no spring break and asked: Do you feel an academic/mental burnout as a result of no break during the spring semester?
76/83 people who responded voted ‘yes’, the remaining seven voted ‘no’ and 189 people saw the story but didn’t vote. The main theme from opinions was understanding the point behind canceling break but how the mental effects were ignored.
A junior from the University of Florida said, “I think it makes sense to help lessen the spread of COVID, but universities are forgetting the purpose of spring break—to give students a break from their studies. It seems like they’re ignoring the needs of students, which haven’t changed.”
A junior from Florida State University voiced, “Not saying there is ‘one right solution’ but still even if it’s just a week to escape from one less responsibility it’s a lot to consider.”
While the majority voted that they were experiencing burnout with no spring break, it is important to voice the opinions of those who didn’t find it as difficult to manage.
A senior expressed, “I really don’t have time to feel burnout when I’m this close to being done with college” and if I were a senior, I might feel the same way!
A junior from Florida Atlantic University said that after spring break she never regains motivation for the semester so not having a break kept her from feeling unmotivated towards the end of the semester!
Getting to hear different opinions is always important in order to grow and learn; at the same time knowing there are a majority of students experiencing burnout with you brings a sense of comfort. While I understand the main goal of canceling spring break was to reduce the spread of COVID-19, however, with the amount of people going out then attending class it becomes redundant. While there is nothing that can change the decision now, it is important to me.
Don’t worry, we all feel the burnout.
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