Summeritis

Do you ever feel that time is moving much faster than your mind can keep up with? One second, you are enjoying a carefree summer with your friends and family. The next, you are drowning in a pile of assignments, projects, and deadlines. The worst part is: summer is over, but your mindset is still stuck in summer mode. This definitely isn’t the case for everybody but transitioning back from summer to school can be overwhelming and stressful for some. I am definitely a victim of “summeritis” every year, but this year, I have decided to control summeritis instead of letting it control me. 

The biggest symptom of summeritis is being unable to focus on school, instead having your thoughts  always drift back to the summer. This leads to a lack of motivation to work, unproductivity, procrastination, and falling behind on  schoolwork and extracurricular activities. Burn out is another symptom that we usually ignore. Throughout the first few weeks, you might find you have been so enthusiastic to make this year “your year” that you worked yourself too hard, took on too many responsibilities, and now you are burned out. 

For some, this might not be true at all, and for others, you might have already gotten used to the grind of school routine by now. However, it is important to remember that summeritis’ symptoms can hit you at any time during the year. Luckily, the cures to summeritis are effective year-round and can be the solution to all your schoolwork woes. 

First in order to combat summeritis effectively, you must master the skill of time management. Prioritizing is the key to effective time management. Make a plan according to your schedule. Get an agenda or a calendar of some kind and mark down what you have coming up each week. Then, look at the due dates and your activities each day and prioritize your projects and responsibilities. Plan accordingly to make sure you have enough time to finish all your work the best you can. 

Looking at the big picture can be overwhelming, and it might make you want to procrastinate. Instead, make detailed plans for your projects and assignments. Break the project down into small, bite-sized pieces. Work on one small task each day to reach the end result of the big project. This allows you to complete  a decent amount of work each day, while still being able to have downtime. This strategy could encourage you to get on top of your work every day and ensure you won’t feel overwhelmed or rushed.

Second, give yourself a motivation to work. Maybe you’ll have some downtime or a snack each time you finish an assignment. Fun can be your motivation. Make studying for a test or doing a project fun so it doesn’t become a dreaded thing you have to make yourself do. Make your motivation something you will look forward to so it can energize you to finish your work. 

Third, have self-control and the mindset that you can stop yourself. No matter how hard it seems, just get it done. Afterwards, you don’t have to stress or think about your unfinished work. Then, you can binge Netflix or Youtube all you want without feeling guilty. Furthermore, if you can’t fit all your responsibilities into your schedule, maybe it’s time to consider dropping some extracurriculars, clubs, or responsibilities. It’s hard to do, but it’s important to remember quality over quantity. 

Summeritis is an annoying and sometimes deadly disease that can wreck your term, but that’s only if you let it. Everybody is very capable of overcoming it smoothly. By following the simple tips above, you can transition from summer back to school successfully and make this year your year.