On January 2nd, students and faculty returned to school after a 10-day winter break that allowed for all to celebrate the holidays, spend time with their family and friends, and for some productivity.

“Break? Christmas? New Year? More like doing college apps lol,” senior Max Fang said when asked how he spent his break. 

Others seemed to enjoy the time away from the heavy workload and stress of school life. 

“I got to sleep,” said another senior, Iris Hong.

But what most students seemed to agree on is that winter break is something that they hate to see end. 

With students back in school in early January,  a mass slump appears to be happening. But is it post-winter break blues or is it something much more expected.

“It’s seasonal depression,” senior Maia Miller said.

According to Mental Health America, Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D) is a type of depression that affects people during certain times of the year, so the winter weather in Pittsburgh may make coming back to school even harder.

But there may be another explanation. The end of the first semester falls shortly after the end of winter break, with students rapidly turning in last-minute assignments and studying for mid-terms and finals. 

“Is it even a break when you have finals to come back to?” senior Virginia Malkin said.

Or perhaps the sullen mood around school is merely the result of how fresh the memory of winter break still remains, the frequent reminders of the comfort of being at home with loved ones.