Sophomores face excessive amounts of pressure once the first semester is over. They must decide on AP classes if applicable, start looking at their future career path; on top of that, they need to continue to succeed in school. All of these thoughts and expectations come with stress. 

“[Deciding junior year classes] took me a while…It was so difficult to figure out which honors or AP classes I wanted to take and if it would be too much…I think I balanced my schedule out well. Hopefully it’ll be alright,” Mone’t Edwards, 10, said. “The process was stressful, I definitely had a hard time trying to figure out which classes I wanted to take. The main thing was I didn’t want it to be too much for myself and I didn’t want to push myself too much.” 

While all students would like to say they are on top of their assignments, it is not always the case. For many sophomores, falling behind has become a common part of school.

“I just try and get [assignments] done, sometimes [I end up]  completely ignoring everything and pushing it all until the night before things are due, so procrastination [is my issue],” Edwards said. 

Edwards isn’t the only sophomore who fights procrastination on a daily basis. 

“I feel like I’m just burnt out so I don’t have a lot of motivation to do stuff, and then I get behind, and then all of the work piles up,” Katelyn Breinholt, 10,  said. 

Everyone reacts to stress differently. Some students use their stress as motivation while others completely give up. 

“Stress can both motivate me and make me shut down. If I’m stressed and I’m in the mood to get things done that motivates me to get all of my work done, or it can shut me down and make me be like ‘heck no this ain’t happening, future me will hate me, but I really don’t care right now’,” Edwards said. 

Stress can affect everyone in a different way, it may cause a student to become depressed or move through each day with no motivation. 

“Stress puts me in a worse mood everyday. I wake up dreading school. I don’t want to be here…Stress feels like, not necessarily panic, but also in a way, panic. It’s like a clouded fog in my brain. I can’t really see through it until it’s all gone,” Breinholt said. 

Any student who relates to the feeling of facing constant stress or anxiety, or someone simply needing someone to talk to, can call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Helpline: 1-800-662-4357.