the p in prom stands for pointless

Learn a students perspective of the unnecessary stress of prom

Now before I start I want to make it clear that I think prom can be very enjoyable and is an important part of the American high school experience. However, there is so much unnecessary stress to prom that defeats the purpose of having it. Prom is the biggest school dance of the year and should be a night filled with fun memories. Although, for the most part, the night of prom is fun (well hopefully it is fun), the months, weeks, and days leading up to magical night are insane and hectic. Between people switching groups and dates and where to eat and take pictures the whole planning of prom is stressful. But why is it stressful? There is really no need, maybe everyone just needs to take a chill pill and remember the reason for prom. I think that prom should be spent with only people you actually enjoy to spend time with, there is really no need to spend one of the biggest nights of your high school experience with people you do not like. I know sometimes it is hard to get in a group because a group is filled and the other group you want to go into won’t let you for some unknown reason, but you are all going to see each other at the dance so there is no need to stress about going into a big group. Personally, I prefer to be in a smaller group, say maybe ten to fifteen people, and then meet up with other people at the actual dance. Remember, you want to have fun on this special night not constantly worrying about this person or that person. This will be an unpopular opinion, so brace yourselves for this… If prom is just a dance why does everyone go out to dinner before? What if you go to an Italian restaurant and spill pasta on your prom dress, that would be HORRIFIC! I guess going out to dinner is fun, but to me, there is no need to go to an ornate, expensive restaurant. You are already spending so much money on other things. That’s the other thing that makes prom so stressful, it’s expensive. Some girls will buy dresses that are $500, or even more than that, and you only wear it for that one night. Then, along with the dress and tux, you have to buy an expensive ticket for the dance. To conclude my thoughts, prom is supposed to be an enjoyable night to spend with your friends, but people have made prom become stressful. Now this opinion is coming from a sophomore who has never experienced the stress, and maybe my opinion could change by next year, but I hope that people start to have fun planning prom and not fighting over restaurants, where to take pictures, and who is going with who. Prom was not created to be stressful but was meant to help students relax and celebrate the end of the school year. So, when planning this night focus on having fun, and know that everything will work itself out and there is no need to stress.