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Sophie_M How are you feeling about the social media restrictions in Australia for under 16s?
  • replies: 14

Hey everyone With the upcoming Australian social media restriction for under 16-year-olds coming up we want to know what this means for you and maybe even the young people in your life. This conversation is a place for all of us to share how we are f... View more

Hey everyone With the upcoming Australian social media restriction for under 16-year-olds coming up we want to know what this means for you and maybe even the young people in your life. This conversation is a place for all of us to share how we are feeling and what we think the challenges and benefits might be for you or the wonderful young people in our community. Have you thought about how to stay connected with friends you’ve met online? Are you focused mostly on the positives, or the negatives? What do your parents think, and what could they do to support you? Importantly the Beyond Blue Forums are not impacted by these restrictions, we're here for anyone under 16. In short, from December 10 Social Media companies will need to ensure that only people over 16 actively engage with their platforms. There is a lot of information out there which can make it tricky to know what to expect on when it comes into effect. To learn more we think these are a helpful place to start eSafety commissioner + Headspace FAQs. We know this change will impact some more than others, QLife provide anonymous and free LGBTIQ+ support and 13YARN are here for all Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people. We want to hear your thoughts on how this might impact the mental health of under 16s in both a positive and negative way. The Beyond Blue Forums are a place for constructive and helpful conversation and the regular moderation rules apply which means we look forward to a kind and understanding discussion. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and feelings Sophie M

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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Zoneey My worthless life
  • replies: 3

Hey guys. just ignore me, I am just venting I AM SO STUPID!!!! Like, I always do really bad during NAPLAN tests (annual test for years 7,9 and 11) Plus I have no purpose. I’ve been told a million times I have a purpose but what is it then? What do I ... View more

Hey guys. just ignore me, I am just venting I AM SO STUPID!!!! Like, I always do really bad during NAPLAN tests (annual test for years 7,9 and 11) Plus I have no purpose. I’ve been told a million times I have a purpose but what is it then? What do I do? I’m clearly just a useless burden. Even now I’m being a burden. I mean, no one needs to know about my life. Mainly because it’s probably useless.

CookieFrog Family trouble
  • replies: 12

Hey, I wanted to see if anyone has some advice for me because I’m struggling with my parents at the moment. Especially my Dad. I just started high school and I feel so pressured. It started as a small fight about needing to wok harder but it has turn... View more

Hey, I wanted to see if anyone has some advice for me because I’m struggling with my parents at the moment. Especially my Dad. I just started high school and I feel so pressured. It started as a small fight about needing to wok harder but it has turned into an all out war. I really hate fighting with my parents but every time I try to talk about anything my Dad gets so angry. I know he has good intentions but sometimes he actually gets scary. A couple days ago he threw my school bag across my bedroom and yelled in my face. It seems crazy but I feel much better when I’m at school. Does anyone have advice on what I should do? I’ve also been feeling really depressed lately and can’t get much sleep. I’m just too scared to tell my parents in fear that it will make things worse. I decided today that I would try here because I had another fight as usual and sent my mum some stuff telling her how angry I was. Mum texted back comforting me and helping me feel better but then Half an hour later I got a message from my dad saying that I should be ashamed of my disgusting behaviour and that he was going to take away my phone and a bunch of Privileges for a while on weekends. He says he will talk later but I’m sure this talk is just another fight. My mum obviously doesn’t know about the message because she was comforting me and saying the opposite. All of this is making me so depressed. What do I do?

HoneyMilk Alone.
  • replies: 4

The school holidays are supposed to be fun; an escape from the suffocation of High School, so why is it the exact opposite for me? Hi, my life has gone pretty much downhill since towards the end of term one. I'm alone and I have no one to talk to abo... View more

The school holidays are supposed to be fun; an escape from the suffocation of High School, so why is it the exact opposite for me? Hi, my life has gone pretty much downhill since towards the end of term one. I'm alone and I have no one to talk to about my anxiety (I was diagnosed a while ago now) and about work, my friends, family, etc. I have friends but I'm too nervous to talk to them about me; I feel as though I'm just some annoying weird, awkward pest that ALWAYS ends up making things awkward. I'm trying my best - I truly am. It just never seems enough. My family don't understand me at all, I mean they understand a little, but I don't think I could talk to them about when I'm feeling down because it's just something we don't talk about. I'm the eldest of three sisters and I recognise how I'm supposed to set an example for them, and that is what I have been doing however it means that I can never have a problem because I have to be the leader; the example. I truly am happy around my friends and family, but since the holidays I haven't seen my friends in a while and the communication online just isn't the same as in actual life. They make me so happy, but now I'm just questioning if they truly like me as much as I do them. I'm just terrified they find me annoying, or loud, weird, exhausting and hate whenever it's just me and them. God, the thought terrifies me. The only reason that this thought has stayed with me for weeks is that that is how I see myself. I'm never enough, there is always someone better than me. Just when some good enters my life, I end up destroying it, unintentionally obviously. Whoever said to just ' be me' must have been insane because in my case that is complete crap. I am complete crap. My real self is awkward, weird and annoying. I had nowhere else to go to talk to about this stuff, so that's lead me here. Thanks for listening even if I made 0 sense, that's just me in a nutshell lol. (pronouns she/her)

Saddo_in_Stilettos_22 Struggling with romantic relationships
  • replies: 2

A broke up with my boyfriend a while ago- and now I feel lonely, and perhaps wanting another romantic partner. I feel ashamed that I need a relationship to gratify myself, to be honest. Can anyone relate?

A broke up with my boyfriend a while ago- and now I feel lonely, and perhaps wanting another romantic partner. I feel ashamed that I need a relationship to gratify myself, to be honest. Can anyone relate?

SaiyanSteph There’s nothing good or pretty about me.
  • replies: 6

I’m having really low self esteem and I’m having really high anxiety about what I wear and I keep asking myself ‘is this going to fit?’, ‘you’re not going to look good in this no matter how hard you try.’, ‘there is nothing pretty about you no matter... View more

I’m having really low self esteem and I’m having really high anxiety about what I wear and I keep asking myself ‘is this going to fit?’, ‘you’re not going to look good in this no matter how hard you try.’, ‘there is nothing pretty about you no matter what you wear or how you look’. My sisters wedding is soon and even though my mum found me a dress and saying that I look great in it, I still see so many flaws when I look in the mirror like: - you’re belly is showing! - you’re arms are flappy! - you’re face is so ugly! - you’re going to be the most ugliest bridesmaid ever! - no ones going to think you’re pretty! - no one will care! - they’re lying when they say you’re beautiful! and all those thoughts are just floating around in my head and I don’t know how to get rid of them!!! someone please help me to feel good about myself take all this pain away

Recycle_Bin I may have coronavirus fatigue
  • replies: 5

You heard me. You read the title. You may have an idea about what this is. I've been agonised by the COVID-19 pandemic 24/7 ever since it killed off 2 million people all across the globe. I kept thinking to myself "What if it never ends? What if life... View more

You heard me. You read the title. You may have an idea about what this is. I've been agonised by the COVID-19 pandemic 24/7 ever since it killed off 2 million people all across the globe. I kept thinking to myself "What if it never ends? What if life never turns back to normal? Is this the end of the world?" It just ruined my life. Even though I was told that it's not severe in Queensland and 90% of stuff on the internet are a joke, I still feel like there's no escape. Not even at home, at school, at the store *OR* the internet can I get a break from all of this constant information evolution about this pandemic. It's starting to get on my nerves after it crossed the line by killing 1 million people, and now 2 MILLION AND IT STILL RUNS RAMPANT AROUND THE WORLD! I'm probably thinking I have COVID fatigue.

spontaneous sunflower struggling with change and self identity
  • replies: 6

At some point in everyone's life, you experience being lost and not knowing who you really are or are meant to be. Especially as a young adult where you are still growing and learning. But I am really frustrated with how little I seem to know myself ... View more

At some point in everyone's life, you experience being lost and not knowing who you really are or are meant to be. Especially as a young adult where you are still growing and learning. But I am really frustrated with how little I seem to know myself these days. My life for years has changed over and over again. Bear with me for a minute while I give some backstory. Back in 2018, I moved schools. My great aunt whom I was close to and lived with us moved into a nursing home. Then start of 2020, I left school. A month or two later, not only did lockdown begin but 2 people (my brother's girlfriend and my other brother's 16yo friend who was running away from an abusive household) moved in with my family. In May 2020, my great aunt passed away which was heartbreaking because I hadn't seen her for months due to covid. Since 2018, it feels my life has changed a million little times. People have left, things have been lost, etc. In the past couple months alone, I've started tafe, I'm drifting from friends and our house is going through renovation. Change is good sometimes. Change is a necessary part of life. But it's easier to go through those changing seasons when you have something to hold onto. Anything. It could be your family, your friends, something comforting like a hobby or an activity. Usually, it is yourself that you can count on to stay strong during hard times. But my life has changed so many times, I don't think I know who I am anymore. I feel so at war with myself constantly. I feel like I've been through so much and it weighs 1000 pounds on my shoulders. I feel like I've sabotaged most of the friendships I've been in, because I become distant when I’m struggling. I don’t really know how to talk to people anymore, how to even talk to my friends and express to them how lost I feel and how sorry I am that I’m not there enough for them. It is so hard to be there for other people when I’m not even there for myself. I feel so out of place in where I live and the people surrounding me. I’m 18. Everyone’s clubbing, partying, and partaking in stuff I want no part of. Home is barely a comfortable place for me anymore, everything’s always changing, and I feel like every time something changes in my life, I lose another little piece of myself. I know there’s a way to stop it. I know there’s a way to find myself, a version of me who’s strong, happy, and really living her life, but I feel so stuck and trapped in the series of unfortunate events that is my life rn.

Baeyuh Feeling miserable at school and I can't move
  • replies: 4

School this year has been really bad. I don't have anymore friends, I'm always alone, and it's also 30 minutes away from me, meaning I have to walk for 25 minutes to my bus stop, take the bus for 30 minutes, then walk up a steep and long hill to get ... View more

School this year has been really bad. I don't have anymore friends, I'm always alone, and it's also 30 minutes away from me, meaning I have to walk for 25 minutes to my bus stop, take the bus for 30 minutes, then walk up a steep and long hill to get to school each morning. I get tired during class, and it gets hard to concentrate. I've had no motivation to do well at all, and being alone at school does not help. Most students in my year level are racist and act a certain way towards me because I'm asian. I've tried making friends, but people don't seem to want to talk to me. I hate my school. I decided it was best for me to move schools asap for a fresh start, but the problem is that most good schools are too far away. I eventually found a school that was about 8 minutes away from where I live and my parents had contacted the school about moving, but they had replied to us saying it wasn't likely that I'd be able to move there this year. I don't want to stay at my current school for another year. It is so draining, mentally and physically. I don't know what to do, I don't have any other choice but to stay at the school for the rest of this year and I don't want to keep getting more and more miserable each day.

Zoneey How to relax
  • replies: 2

It's ok to be anxious. But sometimes we need to calm down. Here's tips on how to relax. 1. Identify the cause. If it's a worry about a medical situation such as you're afraid that you have a condition or anything, see your doctor. If it is not contin... View more

It's ok to be anxious. But sometimes we need to calm down. Here's tips on how to relax. 1. Identify the cause. If it's a worry about a medical situation such as you're afraid that you have a condition or anything, see your doctor. If it is not continue to read. But feel free to read even if it's medical 2. Do something you like. This will help take your mind off what ever you are worrying about. Make sure that it doesn't add on to the stress. This depends on the person and what they like. 3. Sports or exercise. It is proven the exercise and sports helps with mental and physical health. This could even be a walk around your neighbour hood or just a light jog. 4. Social interaction. Talking to a friend or having your siblings annoy you can help take your mind off it too. It can be online or in person. The main point is to take your mind off the source of your worry. You can even talk to a trusted adult. Just whoever you want. 5. Meditation. This is another option 6. Listen to music. You can start off relaxing music and slowly get intense. It can just be your favourite song. Hope this helps you!

edo233 Hello
  • replies: 4

Hey everyone ^-^ I've been having a rough time trying to deal with my anxiety lately and even though its quite selfish of me I thought I should share and relieve some of the mental tension that's been eating away at my brain. At one point I'll feel p... View more

Hey everyone ^-^ I've been having a rough time trying to deal with my anxiety lately and even though its quite selfish of me I thought I should share and relieve some of the mental tension that's been eating away at my brain. At one point I'll feel perfectly fine and happy and then my mood rapidly drops and I treat the people I love horribly. I hate that I act like this, even more so because I'm so scared of the way people think of me and the guilt of making them unhappy, and yet it feels like an unstoppable force. Am I just a horrible person? Why can't I stop? Whenever I feel like this I try to stop talking to people but in the end they get offended because of it. I can't let go of things, I regret the things I've done and I'm scared of making mistakes. That my friends will leave me if I don't agree with them, that they'll abandon me for the stupid things I think and say, and once I do say something that they'll know me as the horrible person that I am...THAT ruins me. I'm starting uni this month and the feeling of finally starting a new stage of my life is like a double-edged sword. While I'm excited that I'll be trying out new clubs and hanging out with new people, I'm scared that once I make a wrong move they'll leave me behind. I'm scared that I won't be able to make a truly gratifying, soul-connecting relationship with anyone in my life. I'm scared of everything that is my future and everything that is my past. I made a mistake today to so many of my friends and family, and while I know I should love myself, part of me hates myself with a burning passion. Part of me wishes I never existed(it's selfish I know I'm sorry), I want to live without caring about these things like others too, and yet here I am. I'm getting therapy at the moment, but even with the coping skills I've used I don't think I could ever stop overthinking, or simply stop obsessing over what others think of me.