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

Caidsf It's getting too hard
  • replies: 2

Hey, My girlfriend and I have been together for more than 2 years and we are both in year 12, she (although she denies it) has depression and possibly bi-polar, she recently went through a break up with her best friend and her friendship group has sh... View more

Hey, My girlfriend and I have been together for more than 2 years and we are both in year 12, she (although she denies it) has depression and possibly bi-polar, she recently went through a break up with her best friend and her friendship group has shunned her, she doesn't want to make friends or try and fix the relationship with her friends, I try and help her every night with her problems whether it be her depression or helping make up with her friends. Recently she's been pushing me away more, this normally doesn't bother me as I've had this the whole time, but she isn't listening to me and she's getting mad at me more often for helping her, she doesn't see herself as I see her which makes me mad, making her mad and I can't talk to her because I can't think straight. We are now allowed to date and when we are together it's perfect, she's fine, she sleeps on me and we both feel safe but then I or she leaves and that night it all starts again... I love her but it sometimes it gets all too hard P.S. sorry if this didn't make much sense

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.

Becka1 Anxiety anxiety anxiety
  • replies: 4

Is it just me or does anyone else hate the feeling of anxiety. I hate it at and even at its worst especialy when I notice different ways when my anxiety is high like loss of appetite when I seem to not or my meals are limited and I either get to the ... View more

Is it just me or does anyone else hate the feeling of anxiety. I hate it at and even at its worst especialy when I notice different ways when my anxiety is high like loss of appetite when I seem to not or my meals are limited and I either get to the thought of (I prob should eat something) or when I have a meal and eat half of it then don't feel like eating any more but know I prob should. I just like to share this thought, as this I experience know and then but haven't for awhile untill the last couple of days. And I've forgotten how much I dislike it. However I have factored in other reasions for the cause of my anxiety to happen, knowing that my depression does contribute to my anxiety and vis a versor as well as My PTSD to. Just wanted to share my thoughts of this at this time and how it's funny how depression, PTSD, anxiety and other mental health factors can all contribute in to one for reasions for each issue (aka depression, anxiety etc) to sky rocket sometimes. Any how hope your all having a lovely night

Crumpet Overcoming Selective Mutism
  • replies: 1

I was diagnosed with selective mutism which is a type of social anxiety when I was very young (around 3 or 4 years old). When I started school I wouldn't speak a word but at home I was very talkative. If I was around strangers I wouldn't say anything... View more

I was diagnosed with selective mutism which is a type of social anxiety when I was very young (around 3 or 4 years old). When I started school I wouldn't speak a word but at home I was very talkative. If I was around strangers I wouldn't say anything to them, not even hi or a wave. At school, because I didn't talk I struggled a lot. The teachers were very strict. One time I remember my sister bit me on my hand at school so I bit her back. She then told the teacher on me. The teacher told me to say sorry even though she knew I had selective mutism. I tried to say sorry but I just couldn't say it. So she made me sit in the middle of a random class to 'humiliate' me and make the whole class stare at me - she said this in her own words. I was only about 4 or 5 then but I still remember it very well to this day. One time I took a bathroom break and was thinking to myself. As silly as it sounds I was trying to persuade myself to speak one little word to myself. I tried to say a simple word such as ''hello'' but I physically couldn't. Also, because I couldn't speak or stand up for myself it made me more vulnerable to other students. The students would bully me a lot and I couldn't do anything about it. One boy kept on following me around and pushing me. I made signs by looking angry in my face to tell him I didn't like it and kept on walking away from him but he would continue to follow me. I wanted to tell the teacher but I couldn't. So instead I stood close to the teacher and that made him stop. How I recovered is my mum pulled me out of the school because she thought it was a very bad school. I was out of school for about 4 years. My parents then had arranged to migrate to Australia. After dropping out of school my parents would slowly try to help my anxiety. They would encourage me to speak every day. I did soon start speaking a little bit to other people, but I was still a bit awkward towards them. After migrating to Australia I was doing a lot better with my social skills. It was a week before I was starting school in year 7. My parents would encourage me a lot and answer my questions and worries. For some reason the encouragement was the most effective and really helped me. Up to this day I am 15 years old and have a lot of friends. I'm the loudest person in my group of friends everyone says. I got through it mainly from encouragement from my parents and I really couldn't thank them enough.

Kymeaka Kymeaka
  • replies: 3

How am I meant to feel when the only person who makes me happy is gone. He was my happiness, he made me feel warm and I was able to tell him everything. Nothing else matters but now he is gone and everything I was afraid off has come rushing back and... View more

How am I meant to feel when the only person who makes me happy is gone. He was my happiness, he made me feel warm and I was able to tell him everything. Nothing else matters but now he is gone and everything I was afraid off has come rushing back and the I broke really reall bad :(.

foxandbear Completely lost myself
  • replies: 2

Hi, I am 22 and have been suffering from depression for 4 years on and off. I have seen a psychologist for a couple of months and then I lost my job and haven't been in a state to work again yet and its been 6 months. Night times are particularly bad... View more

Hi, I am 22 and have been suffering from depression for 4 years on and off. I have seen a psychologist for a couple of months and then I lost my job and haven't been in a state to work again yet and its been 6 months. Night times are particularly bad. Every few days i break down and am in a severe state of depression until i finally cry myself to sleep. It's like someone has died. My partner tries to console me but I feel so alone in this. I just want someone to talk to so I feel like someone is there for me.

Jimmy19 Lack self confidence
  • replies: 3

Hi, been a while since I've posted, but I will start by giving some basic info of where I am at in my life, I'm 19 years old, 6"4 and I work part-time in a supermarket. I currently have no hobbies and have no commitments outside of work. I have a sma... View more

Hi, been a while since I've posted, but I will start by giving some basic info of where I am at in my life, I'm 19 years old, 6"4 and I work part-time in a supermarket. I currently have no hobbies and have no commitments outside of work. I have a small group of close friends and live at home with my mother and my older brother. I have absolutely no idea what I want to do in life, I dropped out of Uni last year as I decided the career path was not for me. The problem I am having is that I lack confidence in almost any aspect of my life besides maybe arguing. I am terrible at basically any type of physical sport and although I am not violent at all nor do I condone violence, have absolutely no ability to stand up for myself in a physical encounter. This may seem like the reasonable thing to do to for most of you, but when you are 6"4 getting pushed around by skinny people well under 6" it really kills my self image. I was always last picked in high school for physical activities and I don't really feel like I make up for it with intellectual abilities. I don't want to sound like I'm making excuses, but I have just no idea how to get my confidence as a man. My father died when I was 6 along with 3 other father figures in the next 3 years. My Mother sheltered me throughout my entire primary school well into my teens, this includes not letting me play any sports, and telling me almost everything I wanted to do was too hard for me. I finished high school as an A-B level student and now I feel like I've been thrown into the world and expected to know what to do. I know a lot of people say that you need to make your own life and work hard for it and I plan to. But I have no idea where to even start. Lately I have been trying to improve my social skills, as you can probably imagine I am not much of a people person, I like people, people just don't like me. I would like to say I mean well by everybody but I think maybe people don't see it that way. Right now my goals are to learn a self defence class, (btw I should mention that I am not looking to boost my confidence by beating other people to the ground) To attend my gym more regularly and get in better shape, and to stay off social media. I don't expect to be given everything, but I really wish I could just get a nudge in the right direction, the last couple months it has really played with my self worth. I just look forward to hearing some opinions on the matter, thanks for reading.

Countrymusicgirl Why do I think like this ?
  • replies: 3

So when people ask me why I'm depressed why I look sad why I'm tired etc . Sometimes I tell them and other times I don't. What I'm hiding is something not many people can answer , I'm 24 and me and my partner are taking care of my mother. My partner ... View more

So when people ask me why I'm depressed why I look sad why I'm tired etc . Sometimes I tell them and other times I don't. What I'm hiding is something not many people can answer , I'm 24 and me and my partner are taking care of my mother. My partner does the heavy stuff and her full time career and I work full time to provide the money. But a question always go through mind 'why do I have to look after someone who wasn't there for me when I needed them the most? And a lot of things go through my head. When can I study, when can me and my partner have a proper relationship. Why am I like this and why am I thinking this ? is it because I'm still young ? bobbie

Loll0405 I feel like I am all alone
  • replies: 4

I am a first year student at uni and I feel all alone. In my first term I started to see academic staff from my uni and I had to keep everything secret. I spent all my free time with him and didn't spend time with my friends. Now we are no longer tog... View more

I am a first year student at uni and I feel all alone. In my first term I started to see academic staff from my uni and I had to keep everything secret. I spent all my free time with him and didn't spend time with my friends. Now we are no longer together and I have no friends left. Making new friends is so hard even if I try and I miss him more because I ma lonely. I don't know what to do. Can anyone give me an advise

Jacky1 Would just love to talk to someone
  • replies: 4

I've just moved to a new town, all my old friends from school have moved on.. I'm a first year apprentice and basically treated like the bitch of the site.. Come home only to go back the next day.. Suicide crosses my mind, maybe it's just easier than... View more

I've just moved to a new town, all my old friends from school have moved on.. I'm a first year apprentice and basically treated like the bitch of the site.. Come home only to go back the next day.. Suicide crosses my mind, maybe it's just easier than living with nothing and stuck in the cycle of life.. Can anyone relate? Or can anyone just offer advice.. God I need it