Young people

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BeyondBlue New to this Forum? Please read this first!
  • replies: 0

Hey there! Welcome to the Young People section of the Beyond Blue Forums. The purpose of this section is to provide members aged 25 and under a space to discuss life issues, tricky situations and the difficult emotions and feelings that come with tho... View more

Hey there! Welcome to the Young People section of the Beyond Blue Forums. The purpose of this section is to provide members aged 25 and under a space to discuss life issues, tricky situations and the difficult emotions and feelings that come with those. If you are aged over 25, please be mindful that this is a space for younger people to connect and provide support for each other. These forums are moderated, so your posts may not appear straight away. Information on moderation on the Forums can be found here. Being familiar with our Community Guidelines can help ensure that your posts appear online as quickly as possible. If we have concerns about your wellbeing, one of our friendly moderators will check in with you privately to make sure you get the support you need. If you need more immediate support, we recommend reaching out to the following: Beyond Blue Support Service – any time, chat online to a counsellor or call 1300 22 4636 Headspace – between 9am and 1am (AEST), chat online to a mental health clinician or call 1800 650 890 Kids Helpline – any time, chat online to a counsellor or call 1800 55 1800 Thank you for being here. We’re glad you’ve found us here and hope this can be a supportive space for you Beyond Blue

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hanne6 Introducing myself and feeling discouraged by anxiety
  • replies: 3

Hi all! I'm new here and am a student in my mid-20s with anxiety and bipolar. Things are so much better than they used to be (when I lacked much hope at all) and I still marvel at how far I've come. Yet, I struggle with constant anxiety which is exha... View more

Hi all! I'm new here and am a student in my mid-20s with anxiety and bipolar. Things are so much better than they used to be (when I lacked much hope at all) and I still marvel at how far I've come. Yet, I struggle with constant anxiety which is exhausting and always feels like it's threatening to throw me into depression (leaving me with yet another worry). Sometimes it feels things would be easier if I were to permanently isolate myself. I try to see my friends but feel it would be easier on myself and them if I didn't have any. I keep thinking that things could be even better than they are now if I could get on top of this anxiety (somehow). I'm terrified, however, of making things worse. I keep telling myself things are great so don't ruin them and worry that if I seek out further help I'll fixate so much on my anxious thoughts that I'll just make my mental health worse. Or, that I won't be able to accurately describe what's going on and my GP will think I've made an appointment for no reason, there is nothing that can be done, and I am wasting her time. So, it seems I am left stuck with anxiety that "could be worse" so why get help and risk making things worse. Quite discouraging...

rollerskater1 I moved to a new school this year, and have really struggled to make friends and genuine connections with my peers.
  • replies: 1

I moved this year to a new school, and thought I would make friends easily and quickly. I have very good friends at my old school I love and still talk to regularly, but at my new school I am mostly alone. I am beginning to think I am showing signs o... View more

I moved this year to a new school, and thought I would make friends easily and quickly. I have very good friends at my old school I love and still talk to regularly, but at my new school I am mostly alone. I am beginning to think I am showing signs of anxiety and depression, as I am upset a lot because of loneliness. I don't know what to do, and I am tempted to move back to my old school, where I know I would be a lot happier, surrounded by people I know and am close with. I did have one person I know move with me, but she has since moved on, and I initially joined her group. However, I felt like I didnt fit in there, so I ventured out to try and find others. I did meet two people, and they have a group, but I struggle to connect with their friends, and everyone seems to already have their own cliques, and while I try to fit in, no one seems to be fully accepting of me. I don't know what to do, and I just needed to rant here to let out what I have been experiencing throughout the year.

Ameliaxo I feel so Ugly..
  • replies: 2

I'm In high school and for a long time I've felt so ugly so useless lately things are getting worse and I just really hate my life at this point my friends try to tell me I'm not ugly but I never believe them.. I also get bullied and people play stup... View more

I'm In high school and for a long time I've felt so ugly so useless lately things are getting worse and I just really hate my life at this point my friends try to tell me I'm not ugly but I never believe them.. I also get bullied and people play stupid jokes on me just to embarrass me I start to feel so dead inside. 2 weeks ago I broke up with my Girlfriend and I'm still going through breakup lose and I guess everything is going on and I've been on verge of tears all week I just need some help.. If there is someone else out there that is going through the same thing lets just say I feel your pain..

dumb_plant school sucks and i don't care about anything
  • replies: 1

nothing matters to me and it's starting to become an issue i think, everything that used to bring me joy doesn't anymore. I feel further and further away from reality and the further i get the emptier i become. thats what confuses me the most its not... View more

nothing matters to me and it's starting to become an issue i think, everything that used to bring me joy doesn't anymore. I feel further and further away from reality and the further i get the emptier i become. thats what confuses me the most its not necessarily the sadness that gets to me but the empty feeling i have constantly. i don't try in school because i feel so hopeless i'm not smart enough to keep up with everyone else, and i really hate it. the school system ranks us against each other and when is see how smart everyone else is i feel so worthless how can i care about something that forces me to feel like shit by constantly comparing myself to others? i sound whiny right now, i have no reason to feel like this i have a great family and cool friends which makes me feel even more guilty about giving up at the age of 15, i'm probably just being overdramatic. i have no mental illness that i know about, all i know is that i'm struggling.

spontaneous sunflower How to start conversations and get to know new people???
  • replies: 2

So 6ish months ago I moved to a new school. I was starting year 11 when I moved here. 6 months of being at this new school and I spend most recess and lunchtimes studying by myself, sitting somewhere in the school scrolling through my phone or someti... View more

So 6ish months ago I moved to a new school. I was starting year 11 when I moved here. 6 months of being at this new school and I spend most recess and lunchtimes studying by myself, sitting somewhere in the school scrolling through my phone or sometimes I go home for lunch if I have a free period before or after it. I don't have a group to hang out with at lunchtime. I'm all on my own. The thing is, I do have friends in some of my classes. I have people I can sit next to during class and message out of school hours for help on hw or if I missed anything. But these people and I don't know enough about each other to like extend the friendship beyond school and classtimes. I know I can make more of an effort to reach out to people, and that i should've done so earlier in the year when I was new, but I just don't know how to go about it and I'm always overthinking it. To ask someone I barely know what tv shows they like feels out of blue for me, you know. I'm shy and annoyingly a few of the people I sit with in class are pretty shy also. I just don't know how to get a conversation going and how to get to know someone enough that when I ask them if I can hang out with them at lunchtime, we're not just awkwardly wandering around the school making pathetic small talk. The people I would like to get to know better are nice people. It's not like they wouldn't allow me to hang out with their group at lunchtime. It's just that I don't want it to be awkward. I'm sure me and these people have something in common but I don't know how to make a conversation with them and find out what similarities we have that we can bond over. So yep... help? How does one talk to fellow human beings?? Thanks.

continuousventer Trying to find a job with no prior paid experience
  • replies: 11

Hi all. I'm currently 20 years old and I haven't had a job or a car license. I really want to find a job because my family is unsupportive. My brother pretends to hit me and pokes his tongue at me every time when I walk pass him. My mother doesn't re... View more

Hi all. I'm currently 20 years old and I haven't had a job or a car license. I really want to find a job because my family is unsupportive. My brother pretends to hit me and pokes his tongue at me every time when I walk pass him. My mother doesn't really want to be there for me. Plus things are bad because my mum decided to make an argument with our neighbour and the home life has been toxic. My brother keeps cursing the neighbour like every ten minutes and they both peer out the window. It's just really annoying and makes me feel sick. My mum is really strict too. Like I haven't had a boyfriend or gone out past 7pm or had a sleepover or gone on holidays because of my mum. It just feels like for the rest of my life I'll probably still be living with my mum. I'll still live in the same city and I'll still end up being poor and not being able to meet ends meet. Like I just want to form my own identity without my mother. She always scolds me and I never seem to do anything right. I want to study abroad. I want to be able to be myself. Does anyone have any tips for me for finding a job? I should of started when I was younger but I didn't have confidence. I still don't have the confidence. Also I would like to get my car license but when I was driving for the first time, I was driving with my mum and crashed. My confidence is a bit scarred too.

Steve_p1 Convinced Im going to perish and just suffer
  • replies: 4

For me- like Im just going to perish and suffer forever. All hope is gone, faded away no more . Just nothing left like dont get me wrong- Im not one to make like a big bloody fuss about how Im going. But like when people feel like they just want to r... View more

For me- like Im just going to perish and suffer forever. All hope is gone, faded away no more . Just nothing left like dont get me wrong- Im not one to make like a big bloody fuss about how Im going. But like when people feel like they just want to ramp and ramp up the pressure and continue to do so forever and ever amen. Like neverending, then there is no end to this surprisingly. Well not really but given the last post have to make light of that somehow ahaha

lostgirl13 Help. Who am I.
  • replies: 1

I don’t even know how to communicate how I’m feeling. I don’t know who I am, what I stand for, or where I even want to be. Everywhere I am I feel out of place, sad, unloved, unwanted. Ive lost all sense of self and I don’t know how to help myself. I ... View more

I don’t even know how to communicate how I’m feeling. I don’t know who I am, what I stand for, or where I even want to be. Everywhere I am I feel out of place, sad, unloved, unwanted. Ive lost all sense of self and I don’t know how to help myself. I want to be normal and happy, not thinking about how to be normal or who I should be. I wish this was easy.

jacques_g divorce and frustration
  • replies: 4

so this has been on my mind for a while now, and i just need it out. this is going to be long, sorry when i was about 7-8 years old i snooped on my mums phone while she ran into the shop. i told her i wanted to play an app and she just let me use it ... View more

so this has been on my mind for a while now, and i just need it out. this is going to be long, sorry when i was about 7-8 years old i snooped on my mums phone while she ran into the shop. i told her i wanted to play an app and she just let me use it as it was very common for me to ask. i decided to look through her texts and saw my dads name. they had been texting about his late night drinking everyday and how if he didn’t stop, she would have to divorce him. (he has previously come home drunk and almost harmed me, i still remember it vividly and i don’t know what would of happened if she didn’t wake up. it was accidental but still). i didn’t know what that meant at the time and kept going on. eventually i understood how bad the situation was and remembering back to that situation when i was about 10/11 it made me hate my father because he still hadn’t stopped. then in january 2017 (i was 12) she broke the news that they were divorcing. i knew why from the start even when she told me that it was a mutual split. mum talks to dad still and always tries to make me. (i think she does it because of my sister.) i never want to see him, talk to him because i know he could of prevented this by putting us first for once. i was going through mental health issues (ocd depression and anxiety) and i couldn’t handle it. my mum still doesn’t know that i know about their conversation years ago but i’ve told all my therapists ( i’ve had about 4 so far) and they all end up blaming me and tell me to let him back in. i’m so sick of feeling like the evil one who’s pushing everyone apart and only my one friend agrees with me. my sister and dad are close and i don’t want to say anything to ruin their relationship but if i tell mum that i know, she’ll think i betrayed her trust and hate me. i feel so guilty about not wanting a relationship with dad and i don’t know what to do. i also feel guilty because i know so many people who’s dads abandoned them and left them with their mums and i feel really guilty by pushing him away. should i just listen to everyone else?

eleven011 social anxiety
  • replies: 2

For as long as I can remember I have been a very shy and reserved person. I have only ever had a few friends. People say I'm just a quiet person. It takes me a while to warm up to people before I will even talk to them. I think I'm scared of what the... View more

For as long as I can remember I have been a very shy and reserved person. I have only ever had a few friends. People say I'm just a quiet person. It takes me a while to warm up to people before I will even talk to them. I think I'm scared of what they will think of me and I very often am worried about being judged. I know public speaking is a fear of a lot of people. But it really affects me. I cant even seem to speak in class when I get asked a question. I get so anxious and scared it makes me want to run and cry. If someone tries to confront me, I get very anxious also. I can’t seem to talk to people. I spend most of my free time in my room and at home. I don’t think I’ve ever really been to an actual party. Even though I’ve been invited to a few, I never want to go. I would rather be on my own. I spend a lot of time on my own. I prefer it that way. I don’t like talking to people, It makes me so nervous and scared that they will judge what I say or do. When I’m in a group situation I don’t talk or do anything especially if I don’t know the people. In most social situations I tend to shut down and freak out. Last time I was asked to do a speech in front of my class, I freaked out. I went home and when I started to think about it I couldn’t breathe, my heart was racing, and I couldn’t stop crying. I was just so worried about it and I tried to tell my teacher the next day that speaking made me uncomfortable, but he just told me I didn’t have a choice which made it so much worse. I almost cried in front of the whole class when he told me. I just get so nervous about any social situation even if it’s small, and my parents say that I just have to do it or get over it. They don’t understand and it’s really hard for me to even bring this up in the first place because I’m scared of what they will think of me. I don’t feel like they really care. They just say I’m a shy person and I need to get over it but I don’t think I can do that.