There’s a reason high schoolers are famous for treating every Friday like a holiday, and it’s not because of Rebecca Black’s dreadful hit single. Teenagers look forward to the freedom that is the weekend, and a small escape from the chaos of high school life. At times it’s quite miraculous how each of us can fit so much into one 24-hour period. But what’s even more baffling is how we manage to do it day in and day out for 180 days a year.

Everybody’s different, but when it comes down to it there are three main parts of a teen’s existence: school life, social life, and extracurricular activities. Attempting to balance all three is nearly impossible, but throw in a decent amount of sleep and one might be in trouble.

Some might think that a high schooler’s life is just seven hours of school each day and that’s it, but they are so wrong. Try two to three hours of sports and clubs on top of the school day, then a few more hours of another social activity.

So you’ve just put in 13 non-stop hours of activity, you’re getting home at 9 p.m. and you still have multiple assignments due the next day. Then sleep takes the short end of the stick and you’re slipping into bed at 1 a.m., setting your alarm to wake you up in five hours.

This may seem a little extreme but many students walking the halls of the high school live on the fast track like this every day. Teacher’s wonder why we fall asleep in class and act depressed half the time, but it’s hard to give them an excuse because in reality we put it on ourselves.

We pack our days full of as many opportunities that we can get our hands on. Some do it because they feel accomplished each day, and some do it to create the perfect resume for that Ivy League school they’ve always dreamed of attending.

Whatever the reason, a teenager might not always have a cheery smile on their face or a bubbly attitude. So before you assume they hate you, remember that a high schooler’s life isn’t always just full of watching Netflix and chilling. We’re just trying to figure out what we want to do with the rest of our lives.