Picture this: It’s early February and the weather is freezing, there’s always the chance of a snow day, it gets dark right after school, and a holiday break is nowhere in sight.

Student motivation is sliding steadily down an icy slope leading to lack of motivation and burnout. 

In a recent poll, 50 students were asked during which trimester they felt the least motivated.

Half said the second trimester, 18 said the third trimester, and seven said the first trimester.

 Teachers had the same majority response in the second trimester.

“I am usually least motivated in trimester 2- when it is cold and dark my brain goes into hibernation mode!” Science teacher Mrs.Gaynor explains.

In the second trimester the weather is often cold and dreary.

“I think when there is bad weather, like storms or snow, kids think about missing school and don’t think about doing their work,” sophomore Evan Atwood explains

Junior Ava Markel agrees with Atwood and Gaynor.

“I feel more motivated to do work if the sun is shining through the windows and I can go outside to do homework. I feel like the weather can affect your mood, making you feel more lazy or motivated,” Markel said. 

According to the World Health Organization, Burnout is a syndrome conceptualized as a result from long term stress from work that hasn’t been managed successfully.

Those who are facing burnout will often have feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion, increased mental distance from one’s job, and negativity towards one’s job. 

Atwood believes the culprit of burnout in the later trimesters is “being tired and done with school at that point. Maybe because school goes on longer than it should.”

Symptoms of burnout include headaches, lack of motivation, change in appetite,difficulty sleeping, exhaustion, feeling indifferent or numb, reduced personal accomplishment,self doubt,dissatisfaction, social isolation,ignoring responsibilities, and anger outbursts. 

Burnout can be easily confused with stress or depression.Burnout is work focused while Depression affects daily life and has other feelings of hopelessness. 

Stress stems from constant hussle and caring almost too much, but burnout is not doing work due to not caring enough. 

Some students find the second trimester most stressful. The excitement of the new school year is gone and the end isn’t in sight. 

“The second trimester is the most stressful, because at least in the third one you know that you’re  getting closer to the end. But in the second trimester you’re starting to get towards that third trimester burnout but you’re not close to the end,” Atwood claims. 

For student athletes, different trimesters have different stress levels depending on their sports season. Therefore different trimesters will have different levels of burnout.

“ I guess I’ll say the first trimester is most stressful because I know that I’ll get more of my harder classes packed in and on top of that I play field hockey,” Markel states. 

Junior baseball player TJ Ohm is in the same boat as Markel with sports season stress.

“Personally, in the spring trimester,I play baseball so being in a sport is stressful in itself but worrying about grades as well makes it worse,” Ohm explains

So if the previous trimester isn’t what is causing the burnout, what is? 

Burnout can be caused or heightened by unrealistic expectations, heavy workload, and understaffed or toxic workplace, or no reward for hard work. 

Not only does school require that we work in the building for more than six hours, but we spend more time on homework after school. . That could be considered quite the heavy workload with little reward.

Once one reaches the rock bottom of burnout how does one cope with it? For starters make sure you are taking time to relax and prioritize taking care of yourself, this could include something as simple as breathing techniques.Implement more of a balance to your life and know what is too much on your plate.

Markel says, “I try to balance sports,school, and social life and not get too consumed by them in an unhealthy way” 

Students also have a couple of ideas on how to cope with a lack of motivation. Exercise ,music, and reminders of the importance of education were common answers from Atwood,  Herrington, Markel, and Ohm. 

Best of luck to coming back from the winter mental hibernation.