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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.

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PLUMJUICE Functioning in university and work with anxiety
  • replies: 3

Hello! I'm currently enrolled at university full time and I'm wondering how to deal with anxiety during tutorials and lectures? Certain settings will trigger off my anxiety and especially certain classes. Sometimes, my head get's so blurry that I can... View more

Hello! I'm currently enrolled at university full time and I'm wondering how to deal with anxiety during tutorials and lectures? Certain settings will trigger off my anxiety and especially certain classes. Sometimes, my head get's so blurry that I can't concentrate which is pretty troublesome especially since I have come there to learn. I also see how it effects how I interact with students. Because I feel so anxious I can't relax and I become brash and off-standish in my responses. I feel like this isolates myself further from people, and I moved recently so I don't have any friends so it sucks. I also tend to twitch, which is kind of embarrassing. I don't know how to deal with this.. Is it just something I have to suffer through and carry on with long term treatment?.. Also what treatments work best for anxiety? Sometimes I'm scared that I'll never reach my potential due to my anxiety. Thanks..

Lax Feeling lonely and sad
  • replies: 3

Feeling sad because I feel like I dont have friends. I asked a few people to come to an event and got all no's. Made me feel so bad about myself. I dont know how to make new friends and feel like everybody already has their groups. I'm questioning wh... View more

Feeling sad because I feel like I dont have friends. I asked a few people to come to an event and got all no's. Made me feel so bad about myself. I dont know how to make new friends and feel like everybody already has their groups. I'm questioning what the problem is with me. I left the country for a while and I guess everybody just formed new groups. I feel bad for my husband because we had so many of his friends and now he's alone too. When I felt down about being in a new country we always had his friends to go out with and feel better. I feel horrible that I cant do the same thing.I am questioning why I dont have friends. I find it hard to meet people or to make the time. It makes me feel like a loser not having any friends and dont want to admit it to anybody. I feel embarassed. My mum was emotinally and physically abusive growing up and whenever I did something wrong she would say 'that's why nobody likes you'. Those words play back in my mind and make me feel even more isolated. I dont want to burden anybody with being friends with me if there is nothing good about me. I have a friend that lives an hour away but our lives are busy at the moment so I dont get to see her much. I also made a friend but she is much older than me. I dont know why it just doesnt feel like enough. I guess I want a girlfriend that is the same age as me. Someone to meet up with and talk to. I've had these feelings for a while but recently alot has been going wrong which makes me think everything is against me. My birthday is coming up, which makes me feel anxious. Im avoiding celebrating it because it'll only make me realise that I dont have many friends. The closer it gets, the more isolated and embarrassed I feel.

Stephjacobs GAD/Social
  • replies: 4

(I have GAD and social anxiety.) i feel like no one understands how hard it is to deal with the thoughts that go on in my head. I am considered 'well-known' at school so everyone automatically assumes that I'm confident. I'm not. I already see a coun... View more

(I have GAD and social anxiety.) i feel like no one understands how hard it is to deal with the thoughts that go on in my head. I am considered 'well-known' at school so everyone automatically assumes that I'm confident. I'm not. I already see a counsellor but what are some other coping mechanisms for GAD and social xx

jes345 A professional opinion would be appreciated
  • replies: 1

I wanted to use the online chat but this is fine. Hope someone can help me! I've always had low self-confidence and never really believed I could do anything/have a happy future because of it. I always think about what would happen if I were to fail ... View more

I wanted to use the online chat but this is fine. Hope someone can help me! I've always had low self-confidence and never really believed I could do anything/have a happy future because of it. I always think about what would happen if I were to fail rather than succeed. Because of it I'm scared to put myself out there and do new things because I'm most comfortable with familiarity. My confidence is so low I quit a fast food job last year because of it; I didn't tell anyone how I felt being thrown in the deep end. Instead I left after the first shift. I couldn't stop thinking about the job, about going back and it lead to a restless night full of unsettling nightmares. Now when it comes to applying for jobs, I see fast food job advertisements that make me think back to last year. They make me feel nervous and uneasy so I scroll on and look for a job that's easier and less stress-induced. Because such jobs don't exist, I never end up finding anything, and my Dad's always patronizing me about getting any sort of work, oblivious to my "dilemma". Knowing that my low level of confidence is an issue, I came across a list of warning signs for depression and anxiety. Some of them I can relate to: Getting up later: I tend to go to bed late and wake up late on a regular basis. I think I have an unhealthy sleeping pattern that involves waking up at random times everyday (e.g 9am one day and 11am the next) Finding it hard to concentrate: I may zone out of a program on the tv or a conversation. Sometimes I daydream when I've stopped at traffic lights. It's also hard for me to find motivation. Eating unhealthily: YEP. I barely eat veggies and fruit and find more comfort in rubbish foods. I've been trying to eat healthy by eating the odd apple or smoothie. Having disturbed sleep: Occurs 9 times out of 10. I always dream about whatever's bothering me/on my mind 24/7 Feeling irritable, stressed or teary: Depends. I'm irritated that I can't tell anyone I'm unhappy, stressed when put in an uncomfortable position/don't know how to do something and teary when I'm uncomfortable, misunderstood or being put down and can't handle it Withdrawing socially/ wanting to spend lots of time alone: I hate socializing with people I don't relate to or know very well. Good friends aren't a problem. I'd rather stay at home and binge on Netflix than go out with my brother and his girlfriend. I've been unhappy with myself for a while, but I'm not sure if this (^) means anything serious.

frances1 New to here :)
  • replies: 1

Hi, Im FrancesThis is my first post so I thought I would introduce myself.I am 17 years old and my current diagnoses is BPD (borderline personality disorder). I have been on medication and going through treatment on and off since I was 11 when they f... View more

Hi, Im FrancesThis is my first post so I thought I would introduce myself.I am 17 years old and my current diagnoses is BPD (borderline personality disorder). I have been on medication and going through treatment on and off since I was 11 when they first diagnosed me with deppression and anxiety.When I was 14 I was sexually assaulted at a friends brothers house by the brothers friend. I was confused on how I felt about it at first because of my age, I didnt fully understand what had happened. A couple of months later I told my sister what happened and she told me that it was rape as I did not consent. Coming to grips with what happened I went into a downward spiral as we started an investigation that went absolutly no where! I became very deppressed and pushed everyone away, I ruined my year of school and all my friendships. No one ever tells you that the hardest part comes afterwards, you never forget how someone violated you against your will, especially when they are nearly double your age.I heard nothing from police for months until I got a phone call one day. It was a different detective. She explained to me they had given the case to her (mind you, no one had notified me about anything) and they had found that he was in another state and couldnt do anything about it. There was no case and no charges, he gets to walk around free and i get flashbacks and disgust with myself.To this day im still recovering and I get a little better everytime I put the effort into my mental health but it is and always will be a struggle to cope and get through each day. Frances

Plant Consumed by grief and self loathing, hard to find purpose in my life.
  • replies: 5

Well. This is my first time here. I spose i came because right now i just dont feel like i have anyone to talk to. I see someone fortnightly who is one of the only things i look forward to. They are the only times when my head feels clear. I hate mor... View more

Well. This is my first time here. I spose i came because right now i just dont feel like i have anyone to talk to. I see someone fortnightly who is one of the only things i look forward to. They are the only times when my head feels clear. I hate more than half my school year, and consider 90% of my friends "fake". Ive been betrayed by multiple best friends over my life, which has made me feel gullible and worthless. I dont trust my parents. But all this just makes me feel like i have blown it all out of proportion, and that i am stupid, and worthless. I dont feel like i have a valid reason to feel this way, that i overreact to everything. I put on a facade for my friends, and my family, but when left alone with my thoughts everything hurts. Ive lost all 3 of my childhood pets in the last 2 years, and while 2 of them passed of old age, i could deal with them. But the 3rd pet, the youngest, i am so torn about. She was a beautiful 6 year old cat, my first cat, and i loved her more than the world. She would always venture away from home, but close enough to be within yelling earshot, and each day i would call out and she would come back. Then one day 2 years ago, she didnt. 3 weeks before that my parents had said that they needed to give her away, because she scratched at the furniture too much. I thought i managed to convince them otherwise, but i just dont know. I also am unsure as to whether i checked her for ticks or not the day before she went missing, as she had a history of getting them. I dont know though. When both of my other pets died later, my parents wanted to get photos of them and our new dog who i hate, they left my cat out, till i reminded them of her. They never once cried for her after she dissappeared, while i do every night and morning. I hate myself, and dont feel like i can trust the people around me, and dont know what in my life is worth it. The person i see is helpful but i feel like telling them about this would be a waste and is completely stupid. I feel like im disgusting, and that noone will ever care for me. Can people please tell me what is worth fighting for in my life, because im just filled with so much grief that nevet stops its overwhelming.

CurlyHairExtradinaire Should I seek help for my anxiety?
  • replies: 4

Hello. I am new to BB forums and online conversation in general so your patience is appreciated. I have social anxiety. I have not been medically diagnosed but I am sure I my feelings. At first I was very adamant that I did not require help. I am in ... View more

Hello. I am new to BB forums and online conversation in general so your patience is appreciated. I have social anxiety. I have not been medically diagnosed but I am sure I my feelings. At first I was very adamant that I did not require help. I am in the firm belief that i must resolve my own problems. I have had these feelings for just over two years. They began to appear when I was in year 8 during a period if ruthless and intense bullying by a large group of my male classmates that continued until the end if that year. I have always been shy and I am highly introverted however I did not start to feel this way until the time mentioned above. I feel uncomfortable in most social situations and have had panic attacks before. My mother has been supportive of me and for that I am grateful but I feel as if my anxiety is getting worse. Whilr I recognise the benefits this could cause, I do not fancy being patronised by someone who views my fear as classic teenage angst. Dissmissing my views as antention seeking or God forbid hormonal because they come from the mouth of a fifteen year old girl and not an adult. Honestly, I am afraid and I don't want to be anymore. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Kafrha Sucky Breakup
  • replies: 3

Hi, my boyfriend and I were dating for 3 years on and off as we butt heads regularly. He was really sweet at the start, he bought me flowers when I was sick and we went camping and spent time with each others friends and families. It was the perfect ... View more

Hi, my boyfriend and I were dating for 3 years on and off as we butt heads regularly. He was really sweet at the start, he bought me flowers when I was sick and we went camping and spent time with each others friends and families. It was the perfect relationship, I was so in love with him it drove me crazy about him. After about 2 years something in him changed. He stopped doing all these nice things and began treating me like a second choice to his friends and his car. I stuck around because I loved him. He never let me text him on weekends while he was with his friends and I got fed up and began finding the things I needed from other people. I know that is a terrible thing to do and no one should ever do that to their partner but it felt nice being with the one you loved and still getting the attention I needed. I feel very very guilty and never told him. I quickly realised it wasnt right and stopped all of that behavior straight away. After weeks of telling him I wasnt happy, all the butterflies and the feeling of being in love went away. I knew I loved him but I wasnt in love with him the way I needed to in order to be in a relationship. This woke him up and he started working harder for me then ever, the feelings began coming back but after a year of being hurt and pushed to the side it was hard letting myself feel for him strongly again. A few more weeks passed and O tried hard to let my guard down and one day it did and I felt amazing. He was treating me better, my feelings were back and we were hanging out again. It felt healthy and right. 2 days ago I asked him why he had been grumpy and arguing with me the day before and out of nowhere he replies by breaking up with me via text message. It was easy at first as I began to feel very angry at this. We exchanged all our belongings and now I feel nothing but empty and anxious. My anxiety is so bad I dont think i can work or go out or do anything. I dont want him back i just dont know how to cope with feeling so terrible all the time. Please help

nxrza Lost, confused and directionless in uni
  • replies: 3

Currently, I am 19 and almost finishing my 2nd year of uni but I feel so lost and directionless about life. This year, I transferred to a new course at uni that I thought I would enjoy but I'm absolutely hating it and also not particularly happy abou... View more

Currently, I am 19 and almost finishing my 2nd year of uni but I feel so lost and directionless about life. This year, I transferred to a new course at uni that I thought I would enjoy but I'm absolutely hating it and also not particularly happy about the fact that it is one of the courses people may deem as "useless", unlike what I was studying last year. Originally, I was studying a different but I had a terrible time, disliking both my course as well as the fact that I barely made any friends and was always alone and was adamant on switching. I'm currently unable to switch back but I also don't think that I have a future with my current course career-wise and I'm feeling utterly lost and confused to the point where I break down constantly. I come from a family and culture where an undergraduate degree is expected and feel ashamed and utterly inferior to my friends who are currently now more than halfway through their courses. I have little motivation and I'm not sure what I want to do. I don't think deferring is really an option for me given my family circumstances but I also just feel really hopeless, lost and incompetent. What should I do?

Timmy101 Paranoia and guilt
  • replies: 3

I'm not usually one to ever ask for help but I thought because it is online and anonymous I would give it a shot as this has been a problem for a while now. im 22 i feel a lot of guilt and paranoia symptoms about things that have happened and continu... View more

I'm not usually one to ever ask for help but I thought because it is online and anonymous I would give it a shot as this has been a problem for a while now. im 22 i feel a lot of guilt and paranoia symptoms about things that have happened and continue to happen. i have constant worries about bad things happening and me not being able to control it. I'm starting to notice I do things like not focus on conversations with people because I have so much going through my head i feel as though I'm over my head with stress and I'm always preparing for the worst i feel like I am overthinking every situation and best /worst case scenarios i have been feeling like this constantly for at least 6 months im not currently working but don't really want to work either i think my dad might have some mental health issues with anxiety and depression as I have seen some medication before and was also wondering if it is genetic this is a link to a test I took also as it might help someone point me in the right direction DisorderResultParanoidHighSchizoidVery High