High school is a difficult experience for many students. With coursework, extracurricular activities and a student’s personal and social life, it can get very overwhelming. Now, high school students are also battling a pandemic, with many of them attending school virtually. 

This new COVID-19 learning environment may overwhelm you, but these tips can help prevent academic burnout: exhaustion and reduced academic performance in school caused by a prolonged period of studying. Students are spending all day in front of a screen with no change in scenery, exacerbating the speed at which students face academic burnout.

Make connections

One of the best prevention techniques is to build a support system. Find people you trust, such as a peer, teacher or parent, and openly talk to them about what you are experiencing. Building trust with someone will let you express your feelings without judgement. You will feel more supported by those close to you, which will help you release negative thoughts.

Turn off your social media

We are constantly surrounded by social media and notifications in our life, which add to the pressure to be productive. Whether that be turning off your notifications while you are working to limit any distractions or spending one hour before going to sleep without social media, disconnecting will allow you to relax. 

Stop judging yourself

One way to remain focused on academics without burning out is to stop criticizing yourself. Many of us tend to judge ourselves for not engaging in enough activities or keeping up with schoolwork but that leads to an unhealthy mindset. Whenever you find yourself nitpicking your actions, take a step back and try to change your mindset.  

Make time for other activities

Rather than constantly pushing yourself to the limit, you should make time for safe social activities or anything else you love. Whether it is going on a walk, calling friends or exercising,  take time to yourself. You will be giving your mind a much needed break, and once you go back to working, you will feel refreshed and energized. 

Set realistic goals

Set goals you know you can follow through on. Physically write them down to hold yourself accountable. If you do this, you will be more organized and all of your deadlines will be in order, so you know what you have to tackle each and every day. Set some short term goals that you can accomplish in a day or a week. Short term goals can be different for each individual, maybe talking to a teacher, finishing a project, working on an essay or taking a test, but write all of your short term goals down somewhere and cross them off one by one for a feeling of accomplishment. While accomplishing your short term goals, create some long term goals that will be crossed off in a couple of years, such as getting a certain GPA or getting into your dream college, and once those tasks are completed, that level of achievement you feel will be unmatched.

Sleep for at least eight hours

As students, we often stay up late at night to finish assignments or study for tests and quizzes. In the process, we lose large amounts of valuable sleep. By increasing the amount of time that you spend sleeping, you are giving both your body and mind time to revitalize and restore the energy you lost during the day. By sleeping more and making sure that you are gaining your energy back every night, you will wake up ready to tackle the day. 

Going through high school during a pandemic is certainly not easy, but you are not alone. You have hundreds of peers experiencing the same feelings you are. By making time for yourself and balancing your academics, extracurricular activities, personal life with some enjoyable activities, you can prevent academic burnout and wrap up this school year successfully.

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