Have you ever randomly falling asleep? Have foggy thoughts with lack of motivation? Do you often find yourself not wanting to do any work or let alone anything at all? Do you even want to get out of bed? It can happen at any point of the year. The absences building up along with the missing work. Slugging around the school day wanting nothing more than to walk that stage at the end of May. Knowing it’s almost here the seniors catch a “case” of senioritis. 

Senioritis is defined by the Oxford Languages as “a supposed affliction of students in their final year of high school or college, characterized by a decline in motivation or performance.” Some people believe that senioritis is a made up excuse, but others feel it is an actual that affects students throughout their senior year. 

“I think there are a lot of different perspectives on senioritis, kids get to their senior year and some of them worked hard, some got what they needed to do to get by,” senior government teacher Tiffanie Carlson said. “The idea that this is their last year and they want to enjoy it as much as possible.”

As senioritis gets to students it becomes difficult for them to get their day started.

“I don’t know if I am dealing with my senioritis, I am not necessarily trying to handle it, I’m just letting it happen,” senior Ariana Vondrak said. “I have to tell myself every morning ‘k get up. k go to school. Get what you need to get done and leave.’ It has been a struggle to get up in the morning and come to school.”

As senior year goes by kids get a small taste of what “adult” life is like

“There is this weird balance of where some seniors are turning eighteen and technically you’re an adult,” senior economics teacher Levi Hoaglund said. “You can buy a car, an apartment or get a job. I think it is just excitement and they are looking forward to the future.”

  While seniors are finishing up classes they start to look towards the future with thwart coming next. Some kids start to slack off because they already have a plan for the future. 

“Some seniors approach it to where they have already gotten accepted into schools and getting ready into the workforce or not seeing the relevance in having a semester of high school when college is on the way,” senior English teacher Robert Laliberte said. “They get to a point in the year where they gain senioritis.”

Some believe senioritis can’t be fixed, if you have a goal that might be a different story. 

“If you have a goal after high school you can see the value of what we are doing in our classes,” Hoaglund said.  “These skills are going to help you when you graduate, it’s real life and you can  either go to college or get to work.”

Not everyone believes senioritis is a real thing but let alone a reaction to life coming at them like a “freight train” and it becomes harder to process.

“I think it is more of an excuse but also being anxious about life is a real thing. I don’t think the senioritis of not doing something is not real,” photography teacher Kris Wood said. “Do I think senioritis is real? No. Do I think the effects of being a senior are? Definitely.”

The fixation for seniors is to have goals and plans for the future or have some sort of excitement to look forward to in the future. If you are having trouble coping with senioritis, try finding some coping skills, talk to a friend or family member, and try to enjoy it. Remember there is not that much time left of high school.