“I remember once I got a 95 on an assignment, and [an adult] was like where’s the rest?” senior Eli Dojoles said.

Gifted students’ struggles often fly under the radar as their peers and teachers expect them to be the “smart ones,” and tend to believe everything comes easy for these teenagers. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Most above-average academic students are placed under a lot of pressure to continue the success they have proven themselves worthy of.

Gifted burnout is chronic stress, exhaustion and strain experienced by high-achieving students who often never feel good enough.

All students follow different paths when it comes to academics; specifically, Dojoles underwent a very unique experience in middle school.

“I skipped eighth grade. My middle school counselor asked to meet me and basically said you’re not being challenged enough, and I want to ask if you will go to high school a year early. I had already been taking advanced math classes, and I would have to miss part of my PE period to get to DGS,” Dojoles said.

Much like Dojoles, some high school students’ accelerated paths began at a younger age in elementary school like senior Franny Dulles.

“In second grade, I was always really bored with math, then in third grade they put me in the hallway and made me do a separate worksheet. Fourth through sixth grade was the Extend program. Then in middle school and high school, I was always in accelerated classes I guess,” Dulles said.

For some like Smera Sujith Kumar, acceleration stemmed from not pressure but genuine passion.

“I’ve always really liked certain subjects, and I always spent time learning stuff that I was interested in and that really helped me get above the standards and challenge myself better,” Sujith Kumar said.

Math department chair Phil Culcasi shared his two cents on the accelerated path.

“I think there’s a lot of classes kids could wait to take until they’re seniors, but they get accelerated in the third or fourth grade, and get put on this path that you can’t get off of,” Culcasi said.

Dojoles is a prime example of the inescapable path Culcasi mentioned.

“Ever since I was young, I accelerated in everything. I used to go to a private school, and we did our assignments online and if we finished a grade we could go onto the next one. So, in the mathematics sector, in third grade I ended up finishing the year at a seventh grade level,” Dojoles said.

The burnout and expectations of gifted students should be of concern to our society according to psychology teacher Kimberly Pazdan.

“As a psychology teacher this is something very troubling. We are seeing more and more students suffering from anxiety and depression than we ever have before, and the pressure to cram all of these honors/AP courses into a schedule is one contributing factor,” Pazdan said.

Dulles views academics like a high-stakes situation as Pazdan described, which is a telltale sign of burnout.

“I feel pressure to always perform at a high level. I freaked out last year because I was going to get a B in Spanish, and it was going to ruin my GPA and everything. It never comes from my parents; it’s me, I’m the problem,” Dulles said.

On the other hand, Sujith Kumar does not really let the pressure get to her, as she finds joy in studying and knowing she has done her best.

“I don’t really feel like my grades and achievements define my worth, I think it’s more like what I enjoy outside of school. I think grades do matter, but not in the sense that I got an A, but in the sense that I worked hard to get this, I think it shows more passion,” Sujith Kumar said.

Perhaps it’s time gifted students are done being associated with having it easy and instead are recognized for that fact that even bright minds can burnout over constant pressure.