Young people

A space for people aged 12-25 to discuss life. If you’re over 25, please be mindful that this is a space for younger people to connect.

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romantic_thi3f Eeep! When study is overwhelming! - Tips, ideas and coping strategies
  • replies: 51

Hi! Just thought I’d make a post with some tips for study. I know this is something we can all struggle with. These are all suggestions so feel free to take them or leave them! Hope they help! If you only remember one thing, let it be this: You are i... View more

Hi! Just thought I’d make a post with some tips for study. I know this is something we can all struggle with. These are all suggestions so feel free to take them or leave them! Hope they help! If you only remember one thing, let it be this: You are important. Your grades don’t define you. (support) Studying can feel isolating but know you’re not alone! Reach out – and find or make friends that can support you along the way. If you’re having trouble finding some friends, join some local communities or clubs! They have lots at Uni’s and even stuff like open days are great ways to meet new people and find out what’s happening. Study groups can also be a great way to meet people and stay motivated. Also remind yourself why you’re doing this; inspirational wallpapers or quotes can be super inspiring. Remember the saying about the oxygen mask? If you can’t take care of yourself first studying will be harder. You are important. You know the drill - water, food, exercise, sleep. Try to stay calm. Stuff that might be able to help include mindfulness, breathing exercises, colouring in, going for walks, journaling, listening to music… If you’re struggling – reach out. See a therapist. Talk to your student counsellor. If you need help, don’t be afraid to ask for it. Also lots of Universities and TAFE offer disability services – which includes conditions like Depression and Anxiety. (study) Find the right study space for you. Maybe that’s in your room, or a coffee shop, or the library. Some people find that noise helps; other people not so much. If you like particular kinds of noise, you can find ‘coffee shop’ noise or ‘rain sounds’ to help concentrate. Make a plan. It helps to do it often so it becomes a habit. Anytime you get a due date, write it down. Maybe you could use a diary, planner, bullet journal or an app. I find the 30/30 App helpful - study for a bit and then break for a bit. You can also get add-on’s for your computer to block sites like Facebook if you find them too distracting. Find out what study technique works for you. Do you like cue cards? Mind maps? Colour coding? Does highlighting stuff help you remember? Charts, maps, diagrams? Recorded lectures? Goals! These are so important – not just writing down deadlines but rewarding yourself for meeting them. Even making smaller goals like ‘read two pages from a textbook’ can help. Break it down into bite size pieces, and don’t forget to reward yourself after!

Sophie_M NEW TO THIS FORUM? Please read this first
  • replies: 0

The Young People space is a sub-forum within the wider Beyond Blue forum community. 1. Its purpose is to provide members aged 25 and under a space to discuss anxiety, depression and other related life issues. If you are aged over 25, please be mindfu... View more

The Young People space is a sub-forum within the wider Beyond Blue forum community. 1. Its purpose is to provide members aged 25 and under a space to discuss anxiety, depression and other related life issues. If you are aged over 25, please be mindful that this forum is a space for younger people to connect and provide peer support for each other. 2. Content from this sub-forum is displayed on both the beyondblue and youthbeyondblue websites. 3. Please bear in mind that some members find content relating to suicide and/or self-harm distressing or triggering. If you would like to post on these topics, please do so in our Suicidal Thoughts and Self Harm section. Please see also our guidelines for making posts on this topic. Posts made here in the Young People sub-forum containing content relating to suicide and/or self-harm will be moved. 4. These forums are moderated, so your posts may not appear straightaway. Information on how our system works can be found here. Being familiar with our community rules can help ensure that your posts appear online as quickly as possible. 5. This is a peer support community, and to get the best out of being here we recommend that you 'give support to receive support'. More on how that works here.

All discussions

Rishia Feeling/looking awkward
  • replies: 1

I just turned 14, and as you would expect I’m starting to get interested in festivals, parties and boys. But the thing is, I can’t stand the way I look or my stance. I never really worried about how awkwardly I ran or danced, until my family and frie... View more

I just turned 14, and as you would expect I’m starting to get interested in festivals, parties and boys. But the thing is, I can’t stand the way I look or my stance. I never really worried about how awkwardly I ran or danced, until my family and friends started telling me about it. Now it’s the only thing on my mind. I’ll go to get up out of my seat in class, thinking I look awkward, or I’ll do a simple thing like bending down and grabbing my textbook and worry that people are judging me about how stiff I look. It makes life so difficult to enjoy. I’ve always loved dancing to music as a kid. Now it’s been different, I stare in the mirror and cringe as I watch myself dance. Soccer was a passionate sport of mine, now I don’t try. I’m always thinking about how my body is so stiff when I run and how uncomfortable I feel. I’ve always wanted to be that one popular person everyone loves, but I have the worst social anxiety. It really depends what days, but most of the time I feel so uncomfortable in class. Somebody will ask me a simple question like “what’s the time?” My face will turn bright red and then I’ll reply. After that, I’m stuck thinking about how red my face went and how stressed I am. I’m very open and confident around my close, small group of friends. But around others, especially boys, I get very overwhelmed. Thank you for reading! Please help me increase my social and physical confidence, I hate it so much!

casey14 Im new im just asking for some help
  • replies: 1

I suffer from EUPD, depression anxiety and ptsd i have been put on high doses of meds but i still dont feel stable my parents only want me to go to the hospital right away if i feel this way but they just send me away over and over again and i just w... View more

I suffer from EUPD, depression anxiety and ptsd i have been put on high doses of meds but i still dont feel stable my parents only want me to go to the hospital right away if i feel this way but they just send me away over and over again and i just want it to END. I dont know what to do? do you have any coping ideas ?.....

Guest_026 no friends
  • replies: 1

hey everyone, im 17 yr old female in my second term of year 12. I have only 2 friends and neither of them do anything social, one of them has super strict family and isnt allowed to, the other just doesnt do anything; they both have mental health iss... View more

hey everyone, im 17 yr old female in my second term of year 12. I have only 2 friends and neither of them do anything social, one of them has super strict family and isnt allowed to, the other just doesnt do anything; they both have mental health issues and are quite stagnant in their lifestyles and dont really do anything new. I love my friends but i feel like im going insane with boredom and loneliness, im usually surrounded by negativity, and i have a past with my social life that has kinda effed me up,( ive been hurt by alot of people ). Long story short, i cant make any new friends at my school and i live in a rural town where if you dont play a generic sport (soccer, AFL, touch, tennis, netball, swimming etc), then there is nothing here for you. Im extremely lonely and just want to live like a normal teenager, i want to party and meet new people, i want to be adventurous and spontaneous, i want to be a teenager; but i dont have anyone to be one with. I dont know what to do.

Alien1927 I need to find friends
  • replies: 1

I've been going to a doctor, trying to get myself better and doing volunteer work. I Volunter at a retail op shop and it's good experience but I realised that I may be socialising with people but no one my own age. Im 24 years old and I don't have an... View more

I've been going to a doctor, trying to get myself better and doing volunteer work. I Volunter at a retail op shop and it's good experience but I realised that I may be socialising with people but no one my own age. Im 24 years old and I don't have any friends and I guess it's Really hit me now and it's not good for my anxiety. I'm asking for help or ideas on how to find friends? If there's any apps that you know of or a way to make friends with the same hobbies etc? I'm not looking for a love relationship just a way to find friends. Thank you

Aranell_a New to this and feeling a little soulless..
  • replies: 1

I'm struggling with my health.. I struggling with my mental health... I'm struggling with trying to keep my boyfriend happy but I feel I don't have the energy to love him. And its affecting our relationship. I feel... hurt and sad... and so tired... ... View more

I'm struggling with my health.. I struggling with my mental health... I'm struggling with trying to keep my boyfriend happy but I feel I don't have the energy to love him. And its affecting our relationship. I feel... hurt and sad... and so tired... I don't know where to begin...

Cokeaholic Started my first job, anxious out of my mind
  • replies: 3

Hello! I'm a forum newbie, so bear with me haha. So I make things clear, I'm 20 and have been dealing with clinical anxiety and autism my entire life. I started my first job at a small fish and chips store three months ago, working 2 shifts a week, 3... View more

Hello! I'm a forum newbie, so bear with me haha. So I make things clear, I'm 20 and have been dealing with clinical anxiety and autism my entire life. I started my first job at a small fish and chips store three months ago, working 2 shifts a week, 3 hours each. I got this job through a friend referral, which meant I skipped the job interview. This job has been causing a lot of anxiety for me however, despite the leniency from my manager and my co-workers, and most customers being very friendly people. All the time, I worry that I'll do something wrong, like mess up packing an order or mishear a customer's order. I haven't gone near a single phone order due to this. The messing of packing an order has happened once, which has resulted me in getting a temporary panic attack, leaving me out of commission for 30mins. My manager had no idea how to handle it, since he had never worked with someone with clinical anxiety. The anxiety only ramps up the closer it gets to time for me to leave for work, and it's gotten to the point where I had to lie to skip work one time because I was too frozen in my own anxiety to move. Despite the work itself being relatively easy-going, calm with not a lot of customers, my brain thinks otherwise. It's also caused me to dip somewhat in my schoolwork, just because I can't stop worrying about work. It doesn't also help much that miscommunication is a thing that happens very frequently with my manager and coworkers, as they are not from an English-native background. I feel like I annoy my manager every time I ask him to repeat something to me. I have raised this issue to be more direct to me to him, but I don't think that got through clearly. My last issue is the pay. Although I know I'm doing this for the experience, I am being heavily underpaid by casual working standards for an adult, so my main source of income is from my youth allowance. I'm too scared to raise it to my manager for fear of something worse happening. My job agency said that I should rely from my youth allowance instead until I get a full-time job, because my workplace can get into huge legal trouble for this. This has been plaguing me ever since I started working. Any help would be appreciated, whether I should continue working, change jobs, quit entirely or find ways to cope around this. I have never taken medication for my anxiety before, and have been visiting a psychologist. Thanks for reading!

Winkpink13 My mental health is too much and I want to drop out of year 12!
  • replies: 2

Hi, this is my first ever post on this forum! Let’s just say I am in a dark place, I have been dealing with GAD for years now and recently the depression side of things had gotten the better of me. I’ve been constantly needing distractions, I hate th... View more

Hi, this is my first ever post on this forum! Let’s just say I am in a dark place, I have been dealing with GAD for years now and recently the depression side of things had gotten the better of me. I’ve been constantly needing distractions, I hate that I need distractions cause I am a person who wants more than anything to be completely happy and satisfied with themselves, and who doesn’t need anything/anybody else. Not to mention I have very recently been through a break up type scenario. This person was not only a distraction, but someone who I felt made even my darkest days worth fighting for. I hated that this person was sometimes the only thing getting me through but it was the truth. We ended because he wasn’t ready for any sort of commitment, which hurts even more because there was nothing wrong with us! We were so close, and the thought of him and I working out wasn’t a recent one, we have been mates for ages now! He liked me as much as I liked him so he is just as hurt... which makes it 10x worse. Anyway, throughout the past few years I have had many days off school as I have had to completely focus on myself... I truly believe I am my number 1 priority. Recently, school has been really hard for me. I understand I am in year 12, I get amazing grades, but I don’t think school is for me anymore. I want to do something that I enjoy and that I want to spend my days doing, but I am so scared I would regret dropping out of year 12. My end goal in life is to be happy with my chosen career, my favourite saying is that “if you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life.” I am most worried that not completing my year 12 is going to stop me from getting my dream job in the long run (I don’t know what my dream job is yet!) I’m so stuck! What do I do? I feel like I can’t go on with this year, I am at extreme breaking points and most days I physically and mentally can not go to school, which is becoming a problem. I feel like my expectations in life are achievable and I know not every day is going to be happy, but I want a change! I’ve always wondered what life would be like if I took a different route to the ‘normal’, I know school isn’t for everyone, is it for me? Help!

Bonnie1122 What to do?
  • replies: 4

I have am being kicked out of my parents home for disturbing the peace my mum has made. I have no car, not much money and nowhere to really go. I am a senior senior student at school still and freaking out about all this being so close to EST's. Anyo... View more

I have am being kicked out of my parents home for disturbing the peace my mum has made. I have no car, not much money and nowhere to really go. I am a senior senior student at school still and freaking out about all this being so close to EST's. Anyone have advice?

Pearl95 How do I want to be here again
  • replies: 2

I don't even know how to start, I guess for the most part I feel like a burden. I feel like I make everyone miserable, that I am the reason why everything goes wrong. I feel like a shit mum, wife, friend, sister, aunty. I hate myself so much and I fe... View more

I don't even know how to start, I guess for the most part I feel like a burden. I feel like I make everyone miserable, that I am the reason why everything goes wrong. I feel like a shit mum, wife, friend, sister, aunty. I hate myself so much and I feel like my husband does to. He doesn't treat me great sometimes, but he's been trying so hard lately and I feel like I've let him down. I feel like everyone would be better if I wasn't here and it scares me. I don't know what to do anymore, I know I'm getting worse. I can see myself getting worse. I think this stuff more often than not now and I just don't know what to do. My Dr thinks I have anxiety and pnd but nothing has been diagnosed yet. Sorry if I make no sense, I don't know what I'm asking. I think I'm just trying to comprehend what's happening to be because I just don't understand