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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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SapereAude Coronavirus and the Impact On Children and Younger People
  • replies: 0

Hi Everyone, I hope that your are going along okay but clearly these are difficult times for younger people, especially in Victoria. How are you coping during the pandemic? What are the main challenges you are facing?What helps you feel better about ... View more

Hi Everyone, I hope that your are going along okay but clearly these are difficult times for younger people, especially in Victoria. How are you coping during the pandemic? What are the main challenges you are facing?What helps you feel better about things? Have you got any other tips for your peers / parents / teachers?

SimpleStuff Not viewing life as something worth living.
  • replies: 2

As the title states, I struggle with the fact that I do not view life worth living. However, this is not from a mental illness, but rather stems from my philosophical views. I believe that life is meaningless and ultimately, that it is a negative exp... View more

As the title states, I struggle with the fact that I do not view life worth living. However, this is not from a mental illness, but rather stems from my philosophical views. I believe that life is meaningless and ultimately, that it is a negative experience. I have read multiple philosophical texts looking for answers, but almost always I find the answers supplied by those texts to be unsatisfactory. That is to say, the answers given do not seem logically sound, or reasonable enough to me (such as Camus' Absurdism, or Sartre's personalised existentialism.) It also does not help when reading works of pessimistic philosophers, such as Schopenhauer or Cioran, I find myself agreeing with their viewpoints that I cannot refrain myself from finding realistic. Furthermore, the result of having such views lead to quite a lonely, unsuccessful life. Unsuccessful in such a way that I procrastinate and waste opportunities (for example, I have several outstanding assignments that I have yet to complete and may not ever complete.) To further expand on my previous mention of loneliness, whenever I find myself expressing my nihilistic views, I am more often than not met with impertinence and disdain. It is almost like others see my philosophy as a threat to their way of life, and push me away (this is evident through the fact that my friendships have suffered greatly from the expression of my views.) Consequently, I also have developed a more negative view of my parents, for the reason being that they thoughtlessly brought me into this meaningless existence (an existence that I would rather not have to endure.) However, my main problem originates in the fact that I cannot rationalise to continue living. That is to say, due to my nihilistic views on life, it occurs to me that it is illogical for myself to continue living. Almost hypocritical, in fact.

spontaneous sunflower High school dropout, don't know where to go from here
  • replies: 16

I'm 17, turning 18 in a few months. I left school at the start of this year. Since I was 13 I've dealt with depression and anxiety, and it became this recurring cycle year after year. I moved schools at the end of 2018 hoping it would help. After one... View more

I'm 17, turning 18 in a few months. I left school at the start of this year. Since I was 13 I've dealt with depression and anxiety, and it became this recurring cycle year after year. I moved schools at the end of 2018 hoping it would help. After one year at this new school, I realised I was at my wit's end. I made no new friends at this new school, I ended up skipping classes and going home early because I couldn't handle being in the classroom, and I ended up failing the school year. I had to leave because I didn't see the school situation getting any better. At that point, after years of anxiety attacks and depressive episodes, I was so burnt out and exhausted. At the start of this year when I decided not to return to school, I had a chat with the career counsellors at school. They told me what my options were and they gave me places to research and look into. I started seeing a psychologist regularly again, and the plan was to get me ready to go to TAFE in July. But my heart was never in it. I kept putting off contacting the TAFE institutes I was recommended, and I had no idea what kind of course I wanted to do, and where I wanted to go after doing TAFE. So I told my psychologist how I felt, and she told me it was okay, that I didn't need to jump into anything too quickly, etc. But it's really hard for me to just accept that my life is "on hold". I used to have a plan, I wanted to get good grades, take a gap year and go to uni to study media and communications. My plans have changed a lot and I'm not even sure what I want to do anymore, if I even want to go to uni. But I hate not doing anything. My life feels meaningless and everyday is the same. Everyone keeps asking me what I'm doing and what I'm going to do and I just don't know. My dad wants me to go back to doing VCE. My family has always believed in me, always expected big things from me and now it's like I've let them down and they don't expect anything from me anymore. I know it's not too late, I believe it's never too late to turn your life around. I'm only 17 for crying out loud, my life has barely started. I would really love some advice or to hear other people's stories of being a dropout and what they ended up doing.

CameronN Advice on what to do
  • replies: 1

I'll make it a brief as possible as I'm not really one who tends to open up but it's killing me inside When I was 18 though to 20 I lost my best friend and other friends from suicide or an accident, that messed me up for years now, I felt like I was ... View more

I'll make it a brief as possible as I'm not really one who tends to open up but it's killing me inside When I was 18 though to 20 I lost my best friend and other friends from suicide or an accident, that messed me up for years now, I felt like I was getting better but I pushed alot of people away because of it, now just recently I spent 7 and a half months bed ridden, unable to look after myself and do anything for myself for the longest time which has made me fall into a deeper hole I thought couldn't get deeper, I was alone and in pain constantly, I pushed my friends and family away cause no one showed they actually cared towards me. Now that I've had surgery and in the process still recovering my loss of strength. I've come to the point that I don't know why I keep trying to recover, having no friends anyone and no one around really eats at me, but I really am trying my best to make myself better but it's so hard when you always feel lonely. If there is any advice anyone can offer I'm willing to try, I do wanna improve myself but I just keep feeling worst and worst the more I try it alone

Cindy7777 Opening up
  • replies: 2

My whole life I have suffered with depression and anxiety. I have gotten to the point I need to do something as it’s affecting me so much now and losing me opportunities I want. The one thing is I find it impossible to talk to people, I won’t ever fu... View more

My whole life I have suffered with depression and anxiety. I have gotten to the point I need to do something as it’s affecting me so much now and losing me opportunities I want. The one thing is I find it impossible to talk to people, I won’t ever fully open up and talking to a professional I just completely close up on them, no matter how much I want to open up. please help any ideas on how to get through this? Bit of background I am looking after my sick mum and being a single mum and also working and studying. My mum has never been supportive and very self absorbed my whole life only due to dealing with her own issues. I’ve been through a dv situation with my daughters father and constantly feel anxious.

cjcj5 I've got no one to turn to, so I just wanna let my thoughts out here.
  • replies: 3

I'm new here and I'm gonna make this quick because I can't be bothered to type a lot. I'm 15 and I have a few friends but none of them like to talk about serious stuff. My parents a generally ignorant and I can be in literal tears and say I'm just ti... View more

I'm new here and I'm gonna make this quick because I can't be bothered to type a lot. I'm 15 and I have a few friends but none of them like to talk about serious stuff. My parents a generally ignorant and I can be in literal tears and say I'm just tired and they believe me. My parents do not believe in mental illnesses and when my sister asked to see a therapist my mum told her there is nothing wrong with her. I'm not close with my sister, by the way, so talking to her isn't really an option. I've been feeling really down lately. I don't remember when this started, but I have no energy and I keep crying. I don't have the energy to talk much and I cried twice in class today. I feel really alone and I can't stop thinking about it. I can't concentrate and I don't really care about much now. I'm writing this instead of doing an assignment that's due in half an hour, actually. I just don't know what happened. I used to feel fine despite the lack of attention I get from my parents. Now I just can't stop crying and I don't want to go to school tomorrow at all. My parents don't know about any of this, they think I'm always fine and there's nothing wrong with me. I guess I'll just leave it as that.

Billiee 'White Picket Fence'
  • replies: 3

Hi Everyone, I'm sure alot of you have heard the lay metaphor 'White picket fence life' ... if not, this metaphor usually starts to relates at a certain age (late 20s) where you settle down with a partner, get married, have kids, live in the family h... View more

Hi Everyone, I'm sure alot of you have heard the lay metaphor 'White picket fence life' ... if not, this metaphor usually starts to relates at a certain age (late 20s) where you settle down with a partner, get married, have kids, live in the family home which comes together as the 'white picket fence life' So it's 2020 and times have REALLY changed but there is still alot of stigma and weight behind this term for young people in their late 20s. I have been doing alot of mental training to try and get this toxic thought out of my head as i don't believe it's is one of my own thoughts but merely a pressure of society that we have been born with blue printed into our minds. For those who experience this struggle in society i'd like to hear any thoughts as to your experience with this ... if it's something you think about alot? or if its never crossed your mind. Billiee

Arnie26 Friends
  • replies: 7

Hi Dose anyone know of any support groups? Also I'm trying to make friends but have had no luck I been on social apps but most people on there won't talk to you or they are after fun and some are just bullies. I have tried apps like meet me tagged. T... View more

Hi Dose anyone know of any support groups? Also I'm trying to make friends but have had no luck I been on social apps but most people on there won't talk to you or they are after fun and some are just bullies. I have tried apps like meet me tagged. Thank you

JCM1303 What more can I do?
  • replies: 4

Hi, everyone. I'm 16 years old. I've been depressed for a while now. Well I haven't officially been diagnosed because my therapist doesn't like to diagnose. I do take antidepressants though and I have been visiting a therapist and psychiatrist for so... View more

Hi, everyone. I'm 16 years old. I've been depressed for a while now. Well I haven't officially been diagnosed because my therapist doesn't like to diagnose. I do take antidepressants though and I have been visiting a therapist and psychiatrist for some time. The medication has helped. I don't feel a benefit in the therapy at the moment though. It's just being told to do the same thing over and over and nothing more. I currently have feelings for someone, I have for 5 months, they don't feel the same way and I have no idea what to do. I feel that I love them so deeply and that they mean everything to me. I don't know how to get over this or make my life worth living. What more can I do? Thanks everyone!

josh174 year 12 student struggling with loss of motivation, flunking school
  • replies: 16

I don't actually know whether I'm just constantly really depressed or whether I actually have depression but either way I'm struggling to find motivation to do school work and pass my tests. Every time I do badly in a test the stress and anxiety pile... View more

I don't actually know whether I'm just constantly really depressed or whether I actually have depression but either way I'm struggling to find motivation to do school work and pass my tests. Every time I do badly in a test the stress and anxiety piles up and then in the next one I feel worse about it, and most of the time end up flunking it. I don't know what to do and I'm getting super stressed about my future and having mild breakdowns.