The year has been going well, don’t you think? You’ve stayed up to date on all your assignments, you’ve attended most of your classes, you’ve maintained your grades; the school year has been good, maybe great even, but suddenly you are not motivated, and school is a chore. Welcome to second semester burnout. We all feel it, and most of us don’t know how to cope with it.
In the fall, school is exciting and new. You’re getting to know your roommates, you’re going to campus events, the days are long, and the nights are short. College is fun and you’re even happy to be going to class since it provides oftentimes lost college students with a schedule and many students enjoy the process of learning in the classroom.
But by the spring, the novelty is starting to fade. You sleep in, skip class, procrastinate your work. Your eyes are straining more and more as you read the hundredth academic article of the year and the numbers on your math homework are spinning on the page. The impending summer break, arrival of spring break, and general length of the school year is taking its toll and you can’t wait for classes to end. But unfortunately, you still have a few more months.
So, how do you deal with this exhaustion? Well first, give yourself some grace. College is not the making or breaking point of your life. If you forget one assignment or skip a class or two for your mental health, it’s okay. You are human, and sometimes you just need a little break…or two…or three. Basically, if you need a day to recover from college, take that day and relax. Your mental state is important.
Next, something I’ve found helpful is making a priority list of the assignments you work on every week. Whatever is most important, work on that assignment first and dedicate your time and energy to completing it to the best of your ability. Then make your way down the list and determine what assignments are worth more effort and which ones you can just complete to the bare minimum. This will help manage the stress of multiple deadlines and an overload of work. By prioritizing, you’re allowing yourself to focus on the homework you value while giving yourself grace for not doing your absolute best on less important assignments.
Then, while you’re studying, do not do too much at once. Use the Pomodoro Technique, where you set a timer for 25 minutes, and during that time you focus solely on your task. Once that timer is finished, take a 5-minute break and allow yourself to get distracted. After four rounds, or pomodoros, take a 30-minute break! This allows you to consistently be productive for specific lengths of time, helping you study sustainably.
Moving away from study techniques, when you are feeling this burnout, you must take care of your mental, physical, and emotional health. This might look like taking long hot showers, eating happy food that you enjoy, drawing or reading for fun, watching a funny movie, spending more time getting ready in the morning, getting some exercise, or laying out in the grass to get your daily vitamin D. Above everything else, you deserve to feel healthy, so spend more time focusing on your needs, especially when you feel burnt out.
Good luck finishing up this semester! You can do it! You don’t have much longer and soon the burnout will melt away and the summer will be here. You have plenty to look forward to, so buckle down, take care of yourself, and finish the school year strong!