Young people

Pinned discussions

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.

All discussions

Sorted by:

Start a discussion

Me and my problems

replies: 2

Hi. I am just a kid and I know this is an adult website but I don't care. Please help me none of my friends like me. I just saw one of them who shall not named to protect thier privacy (even they wouldnt for me) and he told me to shut up because he was watching youtube. I am ten years old, have a super high I Q rating and am in the gifted and talented program at my school. Another is really fickle. One minute shes giving you money to buy cookies from the canteen the next all she does is step on my feet and complain about my tie. its part of the uniform at my school and she was wearing one just like mine! Please tell me how to make new friends and how to get rid of my old ones. The only friend who has stayed true to me is one who isnt currently at my school yet (he will be in two years). We're practicly brothers. Yes please exuse some of my spelling typing and holding back tears is hard. Should I bring this up with my BFF/Brother from another mother? Uncertainty is a big part of it too. I just don't know what to do.

I feel like I’ve hit rock bottom but I’ve only got myself to blame

replies: 1

I’ve never had a place where I could talk completely openly and anonymously. I’m scared even now that people will work out who I am, I don’t open up to people usually and I like to keep my problems my problems. I don’t even talk about half of these things with my partner. I have tried but I don’t think he really understands as he is from what I would call a perfect childhood and family. To be brief my early days growing up my dad was abusive and in and out of jail and my mum spent a lot of time in hospital with severe PTSD. We spent a lot of my childhood running from one womens asylum to another running away. I then (with my little brother) spent a lot of my childhood and teenage hood in and out of child and family services when dad decided he wanted to until he would go back to jail. Me and my little brother had severe separation anxiety when we were young as a result. Mum never really worked or couldn’t hold a job because of her PTSD so growing up we lived well below the poverty line. We relied on the Salvos to bring us food a lot of the time. Fast forward to early teenage hood and I was one of 2 girls chosen each year to attend a private girls school free of charge due to family circumstances. This was both a blessing and a curse. It was hard to fit in and I learnt there to pretend I was someone I was not. I saw the lives they lived and the families they came from and became so envious. I also however developed and was diagnosed with Trichotilimania, depression, anxiety disorder and Hyper Vigilance during this time. As soon as I started working at age 14 and 9 months I had to help support my family and with whatever money I had left I would spend on clothes and anything that could make me fit in. This is where my money problems began. I never saved. All I wanted to do was fit in with everyone else. My mum didn’t even have a car so I disassociated myself with her and created myself a new identity with my friends and anyone I met. Fast forward to today and I have put myself in so much debt. I don’t know how to overcome it. Sometimes I wonder why my boyfriend even loves me, he could do so much better. Im holding him back. He is perfect with money has had 3 houses by age 27 (he is older). I don’t know how to get myself out of it but most of all treat my spending addiction. I don’t ever talk about this out of fear of judgement. I recently got prescribed a benzodiazepine because my breathing is so out of control from anxiety due to this. I don’t know what to do.

Everything Angers Me

replies: 3

Not to sound like your typical angsty, testosterone-filled ball of suppressed teenage emotion, but everything angers me. I didn't think it'd be appropriate for me to add onto a different forum and I'm hoping that this forum gives me as much insight on why I'm angry. I understand that my thought processes are a bit off thanks to my underdeveloped frontal lobe but I'm being 100% honest. Somehow, it was so easy for me to change from this person so crippled by despair that daily necessities became null into a person debilitated by anger. Anything can, and probably will piss me off. Something as small as 2 minutes of my time wasted feels like the biggest inconvenience of my life. Anyone slightly attacking me or disagreeing with me does peeve me, but nowadays I get more and more annoyed for the smallest reasons. For example, anyone touchy with me or more comfortable with me than they should make me angry. Now my thought process is, (and as irrational as it may sound), "they're comfortable with me but I'm not comfortable with them, who gave them the right?" So usually I tell the person off. "Don't touch me please." And they still continue to do it, everyone in my friend group says stuff like "They're just a touchy person." And it makes me feel like I'm in the wrong when clearly he's just not respecting my boundaries. That was just one of many examples that I do not feel are relevant telling, all I know is that I reach a boiling point of anger daily and I don't know how to release any of it. There is no underlying stress (other than the fact that I have homework to catch up on, which doesn't stress me a lot of the time), so I don't know what's wrong with me. I want to go to a therapist about this but I'm not familiar or comfortable with the whole opening up thing. As far as I know, my family doesn't know much about me, only the surface stuff like "he's sarcastic all the time," and it'd be weird if they ask why I need to see a therapist. My sister already sees a psychologist and my parents are blowing a lot of money on her. Once again, my problems do not exist to anyone except me, because of my sister.

The only way i could write about this was in song

replies: 1

I need some help please reply, here you go: not long ago if u would like to know, i got a stress fracture in my foot, crutches hurt like hell each step i wanted to scream and yell. everyday i wanted to quit, but that wasn’t even the worst bit. most days at lunch you would leave me alone, the best part of the day is when i went home. i spent 7 months of that damn sideline. once i was back there wasn’t any pain but i had to learn how to use my foot again. i worked so hard to get to where i wanted, for a while i felt like i was haunted, like no one wanted to be around me, like you locked the door and threw away the key. what was stopping me from ending it all? i just needed something small, i had something to look forward to, something that got me away from you, i achieved my goal. it was the best week of my life, a week away from all of the strife. i had finally got over all the shit, i had shoved it deep down in a pit. but as you know life isn’t fair i had done my knee just at the point when i felt like i was free. i don’t expect you to know what’s going on, just all my hopes of playing finals had gone, what i needed were some friends and that’s all, just something to distract me from going to ball but then u cut me out, i’ve been feeling shit for a while but i still go that mile to make myself smile i do it for you guys the ones who i thought were a friend but i guess u put those days to a end everything that you do all the shit you put me through i put that behind me but eventually i crack maybe when u stab me in the back i spent a whole day alone but u wouldn’t of known we had a plan all it takes is a phone, i never wanted to fight, i was on the edge and had a bad day so what did want me to say then u have a couple shit days too, and oh shit it didn’t have a clue. it’s only because you made a scene, but i couldn’t done it too i was keen once you are sad everyone comes your way, i am so sorry she feels like that hey? i feel that way too like people aren’t letting you be you i feel shit most of the time but what’s that going to gain just use ur brain, i know you probably are still in pain, but what about me that’s right you forgot i only takes one little thought, i always do that for you, but i just get pushed to the back of the queue, made me fell like i’m useless like i’m the one who is a dofus but even then u don’t even care u don’t even acknowledge that i’m even there u ignore the fact that u done something wrong and i’m the one who has to act strong

This is why I exclude myself from people

replies: 6

So..my friend lives with me..(don’t think I can call her that because she never hangs out with me..anymore) i wanted to do something funny but whenever I’m around she’s either being in a bad mood or slightly Annoyed then I feel stupid for doing something that was meant to be funny and it gets ruined by a mood, this happens with people at school as well, I always sit alone now..I’m starting to think people don’t really like me..

How do I start to trsut peope

replies: 5

I am 15 and I moved from China to Melbourne at the age of 12. School went generally well for me, but my achievements don't seem to meet my family's standard. I was really upset for that at first, then I was surprised when I found out how people can get so much support when they're feeling bad or need help, but soon I find I have trouble trusting my teachers or psychologist and just can't say what I want to tell them because I am so scared of being judged. Most time I just pretend to be fine when I'm not, and just let things pile up inside me. I don't feel like opening up to my family for the same reason. I do have close friends, but I moved to another school last so we're apart, plus I'm afraid of being trouble for her and I don't want her to worry about me. I feel so helpless, I know people like my teachers can help me but I just can't trust anyone. What can I do to help myself start trsuting?

Anxiety is ruining an important relationship

replies: 3

Recently my anxiety had been getting worse. I have a friend who is really important to me, and because of my worsening anxiety I've said somethings that have upset them. I've been worried that I might lose them or that they find me annoying or they are losing interest in talking to me, their friendship means a lot to me and they've helped me through a lot and i don't know what i am going to do if i do lose them. Since they live over 30 minutes away there aren't many chances for us to meet up so our main form of communication is through text, I've sent an apology to them, which explains to them my worsening anxiety (which they already knew about}, but i haven't gotten a response from them. I need help on how i can fix this, i really don't want to lose them and i don't think i could handle screwing up this relationship.

issues with friends

replies: 1

Just recently two of my friends have gotten into alcohol (they are 15 btw), and stealing from stores. Also one of my friends has gotten into drugs. In the past we have kinda had a falling out but i’m the one who was the strong one a sucked it up. A couple weeks ago we had a end of season break up for sport with those same friends, who most of the time bragged about how they drink and do drugs. Anyway i had a shit night and to top it all off on the way home i had a fight with my mum, she ended up locking me outside to “think about stuff”. i ended up thinking too much (as i would cause of my anxiety) so i decided to turn my phone off and walk it out at 11 o’clock at night fully having an anxiety attack. mum ended up nearly calling the police. but this night was actually a break through because i just fully opened up to my parents about all the shit that is happening in my life. my mum ended up being really good about it but organised for me to speak with the school councillor. which i don’t really want so i am completely over thinking about everything that can go wrong. To top all this shit off it was my birthday today and i had organised to see one of my other friends but she ended up surprising me with my two alcoholic friends who surprised me with an anxiety attack for a present when they stole stuff from a store. ended up pulling a i am about to pee my pants situation and ran off before i broke down anyway i just need some advice it’s not like i can make new friends because my sporting and social life is all linked and i would not cope trying to find new ones

I don't know if it's something or normal

replies: 2

Hi, I am 22 next month, i moved to Australia couple of years ago, wanted to escape My egoistic small society and country. The fast pace city life and Altogether to get a better life for myself as I thought this country Had some bright minded people and I do have found them to be But sydney is all about pace,if you are not clever or fast or good with making Connections to people,you get left out and all alone. My parents are back home,they support me but I wanna grow As an individual. Now the main point is I'm lost on what to make of myself

I need advice

replies: 5

So I’ve wrote on here before when I was deep in depression. It is different now though. It feels like I have no emotions anymore. Maybe I am crazy or maybe this is how everyone feels and I am overthinking but it seems like everything is so dull. Sometimes I feel sad but not that often anymore. I can’t feel anything. I almost want to go back to how I used to be - crying every night ect. - because atleast at that point I could feel. My brother who lives away came home for the weekend and I should have been happy/excited but I didn’t feel anything. I’ve been considering going to a psychologist again but I’m not sure. I don’t want to go if I am just making something out of nothing. Btw I am 15 and it also makes going to school very hard because I understand why I have to go but I don’t care and I can’t make myself care about getting good grades.

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

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

Me and my problems replies: 2

I feel like I’ve hit rock bottom but I’ve only got myself to blame replies: 1

Everything Angers Me replies: 3

The only way i could write about this was in song replies: 1

This is why I exclude myself from people replies: 6

How do I start to trsut peope replies: 5

Anxiety is ruining an important relationship replies: 3

issues with friends replies: 1

I don't know if it's something or normal replies: 2

I need advice replies: 5