Young people

New here and just want to let out some thoughts

replies: 24

Hi, As I’ve mentioned this is my first time posting on a forum. Um, so I just wanted to talk about mood swings and how it’s affecting my life so far. I’m at uni currently and just switched courses because my previous one made me so miserable, mostly ... View more

Hi, As I’ve mentioned this is my first time posting on a forum. Um, so I just wanted to talk about mood swings and how it’s affecting my life so far. I’m at uni currently and just switched courses because my previous one made me so miserable, mostly because of my fluctuating mood. I couldn’t bring myself to do much work on most days because my mind was filled with thoughts about how I don’t deserve to be there and how I’m not capable enough. I should probably mention that I have experienced these thoughts for many years and have had mood swings for the same amount. I initially chalked it down to hormones seeing how it coincided with my teenage years but later on I began to think that maybe that’s not it. At one point in the last few years, I found myself attending therapy where I was diagnosed with mild depression. My main concern is with my studies, because I’ve become avoidant of my responsibilities towards my degree because well... it scares me. I want to go on to study educational psychology myself in the future (hopefully) but my mental health may become an issue as it’s stood in the way of my passion before. I really would like to get better but I just don’t know how. If anyone could share strategies that have worked for them or someone they know I’d greatly appreciate it.

Body dysmorphic disorder

replies: 3

I need help. If anyone here has suffered from body dysmorphia, please tell me things you did to get better. I can’t even look at myself without crying.

I’m not sure what wrong

replies: 1

Hi everyone! It my first time posting here because I’m not sure what to do. April this year I started getting headaches throughout the day. They were annoying but I could keep doing normal stuff and work. After they persisted for over 6 weeks I took ... View more

Hi everyone! It my first time posting here because I’m not sure what to do. April this year I started getting headaches throughout the day. They were annoying but I could keep doing normal stuff and work. After they persisted for over 6 weeks I took my self off to my GP. My GP ran blood tests, sent me for blood pressure monitoring (it was a bit high), checked my heart, kidneys. And then finally sent me for a head CT and by this point I started feeling nauseous throughout the day. The week it took for the results to get back I noticed I lost nearly 10kgs possibly due to feeling sick. The CT results came back crystal clear (thank god) and I mentioned that I had been feeling sick and he then sent me for an abdomen CT, not so lucky this time around, the results showed “thickening in the bowel wall” and my GP sent me back to a gastroenterologist who sent me to hospital for a camera (both ends lol - sorry) this took nearly a month to happen and during this time I was a mess, crying on the shower floor, deflated, I was so convinced that I had bowel cancer or something major. A Month passed and the cameras came back all clear, visually (still waiting for the biopsy results) while waiting for the camera I started to shake in my hands and feet at random times. I went back to my GP and he told me that “I just need to chill and relax” and told me to come back in 6 months. I went off to see another doctor for a second opinion and I’ve developed a new symptom of tingling hands and feet (random times), she sent me for some blood tests to check for auto immunity issues and just to be sure referred me to a rheumatologist, my mum has auto immune issues, yet to have the appointment. And now I’m sitting here waiting for results on Monday thinking that maybe the headaches started as a bit of stress and then all the possible medical issues triggered anxiety that I can’t shake. I’ve never been an anxious person before either. I guess I want to know if I ask my GP for something to stop it will they give it to me on the spot, I’ve been feeling like this for over 6 months and it’s affecting my life and I need some relief. Now I’m left with headaches still, shaking hands/feet, I’m always tired, I hardly sleep and I feel like I’m fixating on my health. But I honestly feel like there is something wrong with me either mentally or physically. Thats my story.

I'm the weird one out there

replies: 2

anyone can relate them being the left-out one/ background friend in a group? I'm a new immigrant from Asia and have been in Australia for nearly a year. Because in my homeland we don't speak English frequently, or maybe it's just my English level is ... View more

anyone can relate them being the left-out one/ background friend in a group? I'm a new immigrant from Asia and have been in Australia for nearly a year. Because in my homeland we don't speak English frequently, or maybe it's just my English level is below average, i often can't express what i truly want to say. when my classmates are starting interesting conversations, i tried to engage in it by speaking a few words or giving some reactions. but it turns out i'm the one ruining the vibe. it becomes awkward whenever i speak and people will look at me with a face that says 'i don't understand what you're saying/ what are you doing here?'. even some international students have done a better job than me. they have the good social skills that i don't have and manage to fuse into a friend group within a week or 2. this doesn't work for me. it has almost been a year, and it seems that i don't have someone i could call as a 'true friend'. from the next week onwards i will be going back to school, and struggling during every lesson, recess and lunchtime to find someone to talk to. some classmates, who are so kind-hearted, will try to talk to me and ask me to be groupmate during group project. i'm so thankful for them for not letting me feel left-out, but at the same i feel extremely guilty, because they could have partnered their close friends. they could have spent their time happily with friends joking around, but instead, they choose me. i feel i have to at least not being that boring, but my mind goes blank every time. the conversation turns out to be dull and didn't last for long. when i realize that i could have made a joke afterwards, it's always too late.

everything is becoming so much

replies: 3

hi everyone, hope you all had a great day i dont really know how to start this but i really need help and support with something in my life right now i have really bad depression, it kind of comes and goes like waves but i recently have had a really ... View more

hi everyone, hope you all had a great day i dont really know how to start this but i really need help and support with something in my life right now i have really bad depression, it kind of comes and goes like waves but i recently have had a really bad depressive episode. i didn't ever want to get out of bed and i didn't want to go out at all, instead trying to get myself out this hole i found myself in, i turned to abusing drugs instead to cope with the pain. over a 2 week period i was constantly drunk, stoned, never sober. the drugs gave me this false sense of happiness and sercuity which i dont really have in my life right now. im trying to stop using doing drugs but it is so so hard when all you want is that high, im still struggling but idk who to talk to about this i hate the person i've become i want to change not only for myself but the others around me, but i dont know how to stop any advice or support would be appreciated

I feel different

replies: 1

I don’t really know how to start this but here goes nothing. I have recently started uni after graduating high school last year. I did well in high school, nothing amazing but I got into the course I wanted. I’m not good in new social situations and ... View more

I don’t really know how to start this but here goes nothing. I have recently started uni after graduating high school last year. I did well in high school, nothing amazing but I got into the course I wanted. I’m not good in new social situations and considered going to an online uni for the sole purpose to get an education without the stress of a new social life and environment. I have been struggling more than I had expected. I never missed high school other than for being sick and now find myself missing quiet a few lessons. I have stopped eating breakfast on most days and my personal hygiene is lower. I don’t know if this is because I’m am struggling because of a new environment, the difficult year or if there’s something more to it. Like depression, anxiety or autism. I look at symptoms and signs and find myself matching up to them. I don’t know if I am making these up or if they are really there. Or if they are as bad or as often as I think. I don’t know if I am convincing myself of these signs or if I’m convincing myself I don’t have them. I haven’t spoken to my high school friends in weeks and don’t have anyone I really talk to at uni, besides trying to small talk when someone else initiates a conversation. I also don’t have anyone that I really feel comfortable talking to and thought this might be a good place to start.

Understanding your emotions - why they’re happening

replies: 2

Do you wonder why you suddenly feel awful and you have no control over it? Have you felt fine, but then feel trapped in negativity wondering when it will end? I’ve felt this too. It’s rare for me to feel down anymore but only because I’ve paid attent... View more

Do you wonder why you suddenly feel awful and you have no control over it? Have you felt fine, but then feel trapped in negativity wondering when it will end? I’ve felt this too. It’s rare for me to feel down anymore but only because I’ve paid attention to it, and worked on areas that were possible for me to change. Remember that you have reason to feel the way you do. It may be biological, or it could be other various things that changed your view on the world. Your mind in tangible. You have ability to change the way you think. If you decide to contact me, I’ll give you some answers. Hope you’re well. -Chris

Finding someone to help me.

replies: 1

Hi there, I'm just wondering if anyone knows what I could do to find someone that could help me in my situation. I've had gaps in time in my study due to bad mental health and I want to find people who could do an diagnostic assessment of past uni co... View more

Hi there, I'm just wondering if anyone knows what I could do to find someone that could help me in my situation. I've had gaps in time in my study due to bad mental health and I want to find people who could do an diagnostic assessment of past uni content. However, because I've studied an interdisciplinary area... it's not like I can find one person and a lot of tutors are uni students who only tutor in 1 thing or so and wouldn't know about diagnostic assessment. Also, I keep getting distressed. Do you know if there's any occupation that has dealings with distressed people and that could assist me in this manner re finding applicable people? Because I cannot get help from my mother because, for example, she gets distressed and talks for a long time about mental health stuff. Also my psychologist is dismissive of me. Also, I did contact the Uni Faculty about my concerns and basically I got told "do your best in your courses" like I haven't done so in the past... Like because I've done some stuff a while ago and because probably never experienced depression... I felt like they didn't understand one bit. And I have memories of struggling to do stuff re hopelessness, meaningless and concentration issues so my self esteem isn't high.

painful nostalgia feeling?

replies: 3

i feel as if whenever i get nostalgic about something, i end up feeling quite anxious and upset? one example of this is last year i got invited (out of courtesy) to a former best friend's birthday party. the two of us were best friends for a few year... View more

i feel as if whenever i get nostalgic about something, i end up feeling quite anxious and upset? one example of this is last year i got invited (out of courtesy) to a former best friend's birthday party. the two of us were best friends for a few years but drifted due to now going to separate schools and not seeing each other all the time. her friends from her school made her a video from all of them wishing her a happy birthday and she seemed to be having a really good time but the only time we spoke to each other was when i got there and we said hello to each other. i then proceeded to beg my dad for us to leave earlier (the party finished at 11; it was only about 9-9:30) and then cried almost all the way home in the back of an uber. it physically hurt that we had drifted so much that we did not talk to each other at all, when at one point in our lives we were so close that we did almost everything together flash forward to today; we were at my grandparents for mother's day and across the road from my grandparents lived family friends we have known literally since i was born. out of their family of four, three of them were now living in qld and the dad had sold the house and was moving out today to go live with the rest of the family. he invited us in one last time and immediately i was hit again with that overwhelming feeling of nostalgia and was fighting back tears the entire time i was inside i feel like every friend that i drift apart from, they manage to move on just fine, but for me, everytime i have a conversation with them or go through old text messages i feel like i'm dying inside. does anyone else feel this or is it just me? i don't have any explanation for what i am feeling and i thought maybe someone else might have an answer

My extremely long rant about how my church sucks

replies: 4

You guys have no idea how sick I am of attending my local church, Seriously it is like the most hetero normative place you can imagine. About late last year, one of my pastors randomly inserted some homophobic nonsense into a sermon for zero reasons ... View more

You guys have no idea how sick I am of attending my local church, Seriously it is like the most hetero normative place you can imagine. About late last year, one of my pastors randomly inserted some homophobic nonsense into a sermon for zero reasons besides being human trash. It was something about how pastors who love and support LGBT+ deserved to die or other verbal garbage I really didn't want to listen to. If it could not get any worse some old ladies sitting behind me start cheering him on (which never happens since everyone in the church usually stays dead quiet. Another instance of my pastor's major bs was when we had an entire sermon about how in a (straight) marriage, the woman needs to be loved/cared for and the man needs to be respected. Now on face value, this doesn't sound all that bad, but my pastor heavily implies that men don't need to be as loved/cared for as the women do and that woman needs less respect than the man does. I believe that both partners in a relationship (regardless of gender) deserve an equal amount of respect and love. Stuff like this makes me miss my old Baptist church where not only did they rarely mentioned LGBT+ people at all, let alone complain about them/people who support them in the middle of a sermon (I mean they were probably still homophobic but at least they kept their mouths shut about it) but they had a much larger budget to do more fun and elaborate things. You could tell just by how many people were there (I think the total number was about a thousand) and how much space there was that it was supported by people who were quite financially well off. For example, our youth group (which I and one of my older sisters attended every week) did things like bowling, scavenger hunts, movie nights etc. Also every year there were camps you could go on for the summer break and Christmas in July ball (which isn't as high class as it sounds but it was still pretty fancy) where we went to another pretty high-end church that was fully catered and had hired performers. There was also this one time where we went to a youth gathering (a gathering of all the youth group from all the nearby churches) where everyone dressed like pirates and similar to the ball had food, entertainment, and performers.

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