Congratulations! You've nearly made it through a year and a half of college. I'm sure you are having the time of your life, being very diligent in your studies and succeeding in all your endeavors... not. If you're anything like me and my friends, you've hit a wall and you've hit it hard. If next semester commenced immediately without a break I think we would drop out of school altogether.
The rumored "sophomore slump" is real and dangerous. Treacherous even, if left untreated. Therefore, it is important to diagnose quickly and treat proactively.
Identifying symptoms of the sophomore slump
The freshman-year gleam in your eye has long since dulled. Your zest for campus exploration and local adventure has left you. You're no longer filled with excitement for, well... anything. Studying is your free time. You have completely lost the ability to speak before your morning coffee intake. You probably can't remember the last time you successfully dressed yourself without including an elastic waistband. With exams and finals comes a desperation that makes you giddy to think of packing those bags and heading home.
Your diagnosis
I'm afraid you are indeed experiencing the sophomore slump. Your desperate yearning for this break stems from a number of things. You are ready for free time. You need sleep. You need actual, real people food. You need a break.
For treatment
A healthy dose of Christmas Break. I recommend enjoying yourself at least twice a day and re-learning how to smile and feel joy. Really, just feel like yourself again! Maybe you'll read a book that didn't cost $300. Or maybe even (gasp!) get an appropriate amount of sleep. Whatever you decide to do, it will not include 10-hour Saturdays in the library. Nor will it include waiting by the computer for exam scores to be posted. This break is beyond necessary for your sanity.
When we hit that figurative wall, I'm pretty sure it hit back. I've never felt more tired and less motivated simultaneously than I have at some points this past semester. Nearly every second-year student has been in a weird, groggy haze. We cannot go on like this. This is not college. Heck, this is not living! So I have a proposal...
Let's all go home and regroup. Have a fantastic break and actually get both Rs in the R&R (rest and relax, people). And golly let's have some fun! We deserve it. We've earned it. But more importantly: let's vow that when we return a month or so from now we will not again fall victim to the slump. The sophomore slump has to be over.
Let us all pledge to be better next semester and to actually have fun again. Let us not be constantly exhausted and actually enjoy each other's company. Let us unite and defeat this slump once and for all.
Sincerely,
A fellow slumping sophomore
