Procrastination Leads to Student Exhaustion

If you are tired of the cycle of living the same day over and over again and wanting the weekend to come each weekday, you are not alone. This sense of repetition overwhelms and controls our lives. Students wake up, get ready, eat, leave, go to school, go home, have phone time, and then homework. It’s exhausting!

Student often avoid doing what they know they should do in favor of what they want to do ….. this is called procrastination and it’s not helping student well being. It just leads to major feelings of anxiety and feeling overwhelmed about life.

Check and Connect mentor Michelle Douglas sees overwhelmed students every single day as she provides a check in point with students who seek extra help managing their schedules and life in general.

“The majority of what I’m finding is that students are too preoccupied with so many things, constantly plugged in with buzzing electronics like, earbuds, socials media, etc. that they’re not truly focused on one thing,” Douglass said. “Most are involved in a lot of extracurriculars that are taking up their head space. Oftentimes they want to check and connect to find a balance between everything.”

There is a point where people have to realize how many classes and homework high-school students get everyday. It’s a huge stress factor.

Counselor Sandy White notes how time management is a big component of getting a good nights rest and attaining better grades. Sometimes students don’t use their time wisely in class especially when they have time to work on a large assignment and then they are caught with an unfinished project and very little time to do it. “Students need to ask for help, and not wait until they’re overloaded with assignments to ask for help,” White said.

Another thing students neglect is their sleep. They know they need eight hours of sleep a night, but many don’t get it. Sophomore Sophia Ulloa said she hears people complain of being tired all the time.  “Yeah I’m talking to my friends doing some small talk. They always begin the conversation with – ‘I’m so tired,’ ” Ulloa said.

School, especially in high school is one of the most stressful things in students’ lives. It seems that most students agree.

It’s not just school responsibilities but also life outside of education like jobs that prolongs the need to sleep. Students often achieve poor academic performance when struggling with getting enough snooze. Low motivation is becoming more common and with the added addition of technology doesn’t help.

This issue is alarming especially when it involves students failing classes and having that fear of not being able to reach the big dreams for future generations. Summer school is an option but who wants to spend more time doing stressful work on the only long break we have during these teen years.

Counselors suggest that students should value their mental well being but staying on top of school and assignments is the best thing students can do to feel better. Organizing, planning, and staying focused on important things should take priority. “Procrastination just  increases anxiety and causes students to feel overwhelmed with life,” Counselor Jennifer Scheffner said.

Scheffner suggests that students take time for self care by eating right and getting adequate rest. “Most importantly, students should avoid procrastination so they are in control and outside influences aren’t controlling them,” she said.

Scheffner sees students who have put off doing a large assignment and then it’s too late because the quarter is ending and they run out of time. “Avoiding procrastination is the key to success and feeling more energy,” she said.

Remember, a steady diet of electronics, social media, video games, etc. cause students to lose focus on more  important things like assignments and grades. Counselors suggest students put their phones away. They will surprised at how much more they get done without all the buzzing and pinging distractions all the time.

No matter the issues, eating right, getting enough sleep, unplugging from computers and phones, and focusing on immediate issues and assignments will help ease student exhaustion.