It is the affliction that plagues many.

The undeniable feeling of exhaustion.

You only know you have it only when it is too late.

Senioritis.

It’s the seasonal affliction that all high school seniors and parents are warned about. Many high school seniors, fresh off of winter break and finishing up the last of their college applications, begin to lag. Missing class, not doing homework, getting lower grades on assignments they would usually ace - all signs of the ever-present ‘senioritis.’

It’s not hard to understand why many seniors crash second semester. After months of preparing for the college admissions process, hitting ‘submit’ on that last college application can feel like collapsing across a huge finish line. What many students fail to realize, however, is that completing applications isn’t the end of the journey - it’s just the beginning.

Remember that promise you made to yourself freshman year that you would not contract this disease? Although avoidable,, it is extremely difficult not to give into the temptation. Yes, you may have two study halls a day but that does not give you an excuse to nap during both when your research paper is due at the end of the week. The "I'll do it later" excuses snowball into not doing the assignment at all which leads to a frantic student scrambling down their stats homework five minutes before class starts. Seniors will recognize that they probably should start their homework, but most are too bothered to actually care.

Not only is it detrimental to your spring semester but it can also hinder the start to your college career.

It can affect acceptances.

Yes, colleges can rescind acceptances. If a student gets into a highly selective college, then drops from an A to a C or D average spring semester, that college will seriously reconsider if that student is prepared for college in the fall. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of rescinded acceptances every year. Just because a student got in doesn’t mean he or she is home free colleges reserve the right to take it away if the student doesn’t live up to his or her academic responsibilities.

In the end, don't power down just yet. Take only one nap during study hall and limit yourself to only three episodes of The Office in one day. Enjoy the second semester while it lasts Class of 2017.