Young people

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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 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!

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 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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Stressed, Depressed, Overwhelmed

replies: 4

Hey so i just started studying a Diploma at a college. It's been alright, the work is okay just a bit too much with the assignments which make me a little stressed because of how little time i have to do them. Anyways, it's been 2 months since i started and i've already had 2 breakdowns IN CLASS. One of them was yesterday, had a full blown panic attack in class, everyone was super nice about it but i dramatically ran out the class which was so embarrassing. I've been struggling a lot with my anxiety and panic attacks and depression. My moods have been all over the place i cant seem to control them. I feel like my emotions and my whole body is so out of control and i don't like the way it makes me feel. I also feel really alone since i fell out with my best friends last year, tried reconnecting but they don't seem to want to be civil. So i feel really alone, my mental health is deteriorating and idk what to do about it. I would go seek help if i could but my parents are against it, even though i'm 18. I thought about going by myself but i don't know what the process is and how much it is... but yeah idk what to do.

Not Suited for Full-time Study

replies: 3

I'm having a surprising amount of trouble with tertiary education. The TAFE I go to only has full-time study for my chosen course, meaning even though I am passionate about what i'm studying, I might not be able to finish it. Additionally, the campus doesn't offer a certificate IV, so I'm stuck studying a diploma, the difficulty of which I am only just finding out. My brain just isn't suited for academia and it feels disappointing I'm not at that level yet. It's cliche but I feel lost now that I'm transitioning into a full-blown adult. Thanks for reading.

help

replies: 3

It's been too long and I think I need to share my thoughts. I've gone to a councilor couple times before but it didn't feel right. I guess I'll give this a shot. I always feel empty, some days more than others but I always have it in me, like something's missing. My mom noticed that something might be wrong but I'd just get mad at her and reassure that I'm alright, I dont know why I'd react like that... Sometimes days would pass without me even noticing because all I've done is lie on my bed. Sometimes I don't even have any reasons to feel like that but I can't help it. I've disappointed so many people with my behavior... I've lost friends and I've lost opportunities. Once my host mom (I'm an exchange student) got so mad at me for spending too much time in my room and when she told me this I was surprised because I didn't even notice it. I didn't realize that the time had gone by so quickly. I also got into an argument with my other host family and they told me the same thing. I don't get it. And when I'm feeling like this, it'd last for atleast three days, sometimes way longer but I think it depends on the "trigger". Once I got into a huge fight with my then best friend and it got me so messed up. I would cry myself to sleep every night and on days I literally looked like half dead. I'd spend my time self-loathing and sleeping. It's been over 3 months and I'm still not fully over it. After that fight all I've done is compare myself to the girl and I feel like it's making me crazy. She's skinny and beautiful and I'm the opposite. I exercise nearöy every day and I feel like I'm not losing any weight. I did try some unhealthy methods as well but I feel like my body is against it. Everything the girl does makes me compare myself to her. We're in the same situation; exchange students, same school, same city and we used to be in the same friend group as well but after the fight I couldn't be with them because it made me feel awful. She has done some other stuff that makes me wonder if she's trying to prove me that she's better than me but maybe she doesn't do it on purpose. It's not like she'd have to prove that anyways. Honestly though, I have no idea what I'm doing here. I can't even put my feelings to words and this whole thing is going to sound like I'm a crazy jealous angsty teenager.. I don't know maybe I just feel lonely.

Just getting things off my chest

replies: 5

Ooft okay how do it start... So basically I’ve been feeling like this for years now really but I kept of shrugging it off like it’s nothing. I don’t know if I’m burnt out or have high level anxiety or a bit of depression or all of them combined. I always feel like something is wrong with me or something bad is going to happen, I always waiting for that “thing” to hit me. And I always feel like I’m forgetting something. Or I feel empty, like my stomach feels empty all the time. I tried filling it with food, which did not help, Made me feel worse. It’s getting worse and worse especially after years nine. I’m frequently having all this random breakdowns at school and I easily cry for no reason at all, I’m also having trouble concentrating. Like at school my classmate and I were working on a project and she said something which isn’t funny because if it was people would start laughing but for some reason I laughed to the point where tears starts running down and I feel like I can’t even control what I’m feeling anymore. One minute I’m all happy and okay the next I feel like everything’s going downhill. I sometimes feel like I’m a disappointment or something. Like I can’t even do simple things or achieve them. I keep on zoning out in class no matter how hard I try to concentrate. I tried studying in small Chunks and all and it did not help, nothing helps at this point. I feel like I’m constantly disappointing everyone around me, my teachers, my friends, my parents. Plus everyone around me is saying things like “you’re smart you’re going to do well”, I can’t help but feel like I have to conform to their expectations like i have to constantly get 98, 99 in all my tests. I’m also scared to talk in front of the class for some unknown reason. I get all shaky and my mind just goes blank and my heart started beating rapidly n I started to get trouble breathing. I also get paranoid easily like one day I saw a flash and thought someone took a picture of me cause they hate me and wanna talk shit about me and all which is stupid i know what I can’t help it. I kept on telling myself that oh it will get better soon just get enough sleep. No. It didn’t help. Why do I keep feeling this way and how do I stop. Is it normal? I wonder how it feels not having to constantly worry. I need help? I sometimes feel like I wanna escape from all of this, escape form this reality, I wanna disappear so that I no longer have to deal with all these. It’s not like I wanna disappear disappear it’s just that I sometimes feel like I wanna leave everything behind for a few days or so without worrying about anything. right now I’m feeling overwhelmed by school and everything. At school all I hear are complaints and even in class. I have this one friend that kept on complaining about everything. I’m already carrying all of my heavy burdens and him complaining about his bad day or him not finishing his work isn’t helping. What am I supposed to do? I can’t tell him off but at the same time if he keeps on doing this I feel like I’m going to burst. I feel like a ballon filling with air with every second passing by getting bigger and bigger to the point where it’s on the verge of bursting.

year 12 - unmotivated and frustrated

replies: 1

hi everyone, this is my first time posting here so i was a bit hesitant but here i am. i'm currently in year 12 and i guess i'm approaching the halfway mark (completed term 4 and am currently nearing the end of week 7 term 1). i have always had issues with school even in primary school relating to the completion of any sort of schoolwork whether it be assessments, homework and studying. i thought this year would never come because it always seemed so unreachable but now that it's here i'm mentally, physically and emotionally drained more than ever. i don't really know how i'm going to be able to comfortably make it through the year and especially through my hsc exam period since i never have the motivation to do work and am always procrastinating to try and avoid from doing anything. however, i still want to relax and have as much fun as i can since it is the last year of high school but it's difficult with that constant thought of the hsc in the back of my mind. i've given it much thought and i don't think i would want to go to university (even though my parents are expecting me to) so i know for a fact that the atar i get isn't exactly a 'be all and end all' situation for me but that still doesn't stop me from wanting to do well despite how i'm feeling. i've always felt that school just "wasn't it" for me if that makes sense. i'm the type of person who will only feel motivated to do things if it is something that i personally want to do and so sitting there studying or writing essays or sitting exams are things that i never want to do. this has resulted in me always completing things last minute and holding off completing schoolwork as long as i can. i feel as if i am at a point where i can't retain anything in my brain anymore because i don't have a desire to. i find myself reading a sentence to myself over and over again for 5 minutes because i just keep forgetting it (this is also the same for when i'm listening to someone talk - i will hear one sentence and try to remember it but then realise i hadn't been listening to everything else they have said). my vocabulary has never been extremely expansive or sophisticated but now i feel as if it is becoming even less so. i forget basic words often and i think my writing skills are getting worse. i'm behind on classwork and have had random moments where i start crying at home because of how frustrated i am. there's so much for me to say but so little characters - sorry if i'm ranting but i'm just stressed.

Lonely in a Small Town and Looking for Support

replies: 22

Hello BB members, I'm new here and am looking for some guidance. I'm 19 years old and I live in a small town. I'm really struggling lately because of my lack of a boyfriend/a really intimate close friend(s). I used to feel like I wasn't achieving anything since school ended because my friends went to uni, I didn't have a job and was generally not as successful or "grown-up" as my peers but things have been going really well for me lately; I've started doing a Cert 4 at TAFE, I finally got my drivers license, and I'm possibly going to be starting a council traineeship soon so now I have much more independence and more hope for my future but the more goals I tick off the list, the more pathetic I feel as far as my friendships and love life go. 3 of the people I went to school with are already engaged and I've never even had a boyfriend before. I didn't have any close friends until the middle of high school and now that they're at uni, I'm back to square one. I have friends around here but I don't have any really close friends that I can confide in, laugh with, and spend lots of time with. I wish I had a way to meet people but there's just not a lot of opportunities around here to hang out with people my age post high school. I was really hopeful I would make friends at TAFE and I've actually met a couple of people I get along well with but for the most part, the TAFE campus here is not very populated and thus not a great way to meet new friends. Going back to my love life, which has been the biggest factor in my depression lately, I feel like I'm between a rock and a hard place because one of the only ways to meet single people around here is through dating apps which make me feel miserable but being single also makes me feel miserable. I'm so lonely that I have to imagine I have a boyfriend just to get out of bed and get through the day. I know I must sound pretty pathetic but I just feel really isolated, lost, and alone and I could use some support right now.

I feel so alone and like my life has no meaning

replies: 5

Hello BB forum users. As the title suggests, I'm currently struggling with loneliness (and have been consistently struggling with it for a year now.) I'm 19 years old and graduated high school about a year ago. The few friends I made there are at uni now and have lots of new friends whereas because I'm still living in my small home town, I've barely made any. What's worse is whenever my friends have been back in town they've been too busy to meet up with me and I'm starting to feel like our lives are too different for us to continue being close especially since the last few times I chatted with them on FB messenger, their answers seemed very short and impersonal. Another thing I've been struggling with immensely is lack of intimacy and sexual frustration. I've never had sex or even kissed anyone and I'm constantly fantasizing about finally being physical with someone and it makes me so depressed. Masturbation barely does anything for me anymore and I just wish I could finally experience sexual connection or even just platonic affection. I don't even remember the last time I've been hugged by somebody. I've tried to meet other single people but one of the only ways to do that around here is on dating apps which make me feel really objectified and I just don't feel like they've got what I'm looking for. The more and more lonely and frustrated I get, the more I feel like maybe I should just swallow my pride and embrace random hookups like so many other people my age have. On a more positive note, I'm planning on joining the local theatre group and youth council early next year which should hopefully provide me with opportunities to get out of the house and meet people but I just can't help but have no motivation to truly live my life since so many of the positive social/intimacy experiences I've had this year have been figments of my imagination. I know this must be a lot to unpack but I just feel so depressed and misunderstood and could really use some guidance.

I don’t know how to get help

replies: 3

I don’t actually know what’s wrong with me but I do know that something might possibly be wrong. I just have these feelings of like impending doom sometimes and I can’t stop myself from thinking about it. There are other things too but that’s not really the point of this post. Point is: I’m so lost. I don’t want to tell my parents coz I’m worried of what they’ll think. I know my parents don’t really understand the weight mental illness has and the affect it can have on people. I have had a few counselling sessions at my school but during that time I didn’t have the guts to tell her how I truely felt inside and I think because I pretended to be okay she thinks I don’t need to see her anymore. I know it’s stupid but I don’t want to tell anyone because I don’t want to feel weak. But I feel that if I don’t start getting help something bad’s gonna happen. I just don’t know what to do. I want to stop feeling like this but I’m also scared that I’m just overreacting. I have a pretty good life and I really haven’t gone through anything too bad. I keep telling myself that if I get my life together everything will get better and sometimes that works for a bit but then I end up feeling the same way again. I just want the feelings to stop and I want to let all my emotions out but I’m afraid to. I was going to chat online with one of the beyond blue people but I kind of chickened out. At least posting this isn’t like a really conversation because it’s not directly to someone and I don’t have to reply

struggling

replies: 4

Hi! I am F16 and recently have been experiencing some issues. I don't want to write long, boring paragraphs about how I feel and factors which may be affecting it so I'll sum it up in some dot points. I have been distancing myself from others a fair bit recently. Normally I am an energetic, bubbly and friendly person however I have become more quiet and reserved recently. Sometimes my old personality resurfaces for a few hours. When my friends ask what's wrong, usually I say I am tired. This is not completely a lie, as I will generally feel tired. This however is puzzling as I am receiving 8 & 1/2 hours of sleep a night. I feel very unmotivated, distracted and empty. Sometimes I feel as if I am simply existing, and the world is operating around me. This in turn also makes me feel quite lonely. My room is an absolute mess at the moment and I hate it, however I can't find the motivation to clean it. A few months ago we sold my house. We are renting at the moment, and in the process of finding a new house. This is very stressful and frustrating, as a few times now we have had our heart set on a house but we have unfortunately missed out on it. I just want to officially move. The process is so unbelievably tiring. I go through these really hyper, talkative and distracting moods in class where I quite literally can't get anything done. I am aware of when I go through them and it makes me upset because I know I am irritating my teacher and I want to be a good student and receive good grades, but I just physically can't bring myself to pay attention. I have been struggling to find the motivation to do my school work. If/when I start, I will generally not end up finishing it. It also takes me a long time to do work because I get distracted frequently and believe that most things I do aren't good enough, so I tend to re-read everything I have written after I make minor tweaks or write new sentences etc. (sorry I struggle to accurately describe it) Went vegetarian as of the 1st of January for ethical & environmental reasons. I have been taking B12 supplements and would like to start taking iron supplements to see if it helps with my lack of energy & sleepiness. Frequently have been getting stomach pains I get in these really obsessive moods/phases where I will obsessively research something e.g. today I researched getting a dog and calculated all the costs, did the research on the best products etc. I would love to receive any advice or feedback possible! Thanks.

Im scared

replies: 2

Hello Todays been a weird day (its almost midnight now) I’ve been feeling really empty and hollow today and either been sitting or lying down all day, exception for food and bathrooms. Its not depression (though I am diagnosed with that, anxiety, OCD, panic. amongst other things) I have lots of things to do tomorrow and the days after that but Im too scared and stressed to do anything. hell pls. What are some ways you not feel so hollow and empty??

Eeep! When study is overwhelming! - Tips, ideas and coping strategies replies: 51

NEW TO THIS FORUM? Please read this first replies: 0

Stressed, Depressed, Overwhelmed replies: 4

Not Suited for Full-time Study replies: 3

help replies: 3

Just getting things off my chest replies: 5

year 12 - unmotivated and frustrated replies: 1

Lonely in a Small Town and Looking for Support replies: 22

I feel so alone and like my life has no meaning replies: 5

I don’t know how to get help replies: 3

struggling replies: 4

Im scared replies: 2