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burnt out

nikobee
Community Member
I'm graduating high school this year, and my hsc starts in a couple weeks, but i can't motivate myself to study at all. every time i get a practice question wrong i just start crying, and i can't do any long answer questions, it's so overwhelming. I feel like i don't remember anything i've studied, and i keep forgetting the most basic stuff. i really need to study now more than ever but i just end up crying for my entire scheduled session. I don't know what to do, any advice is appreciated.
4 Replies 4

Isabella_
Champion Alumni
Champion Alumni

Hi there,

I can see you're really overwhelmed and under a lot of stress. I did my HSC last year.. I understand the stress you're in, and doing it during covid has made things even harder.

It's great that you acknowledge that you're burnt out. You can't expect your memory to be working at it's best when you're very overwhelmed and emotional, and that's okay. It sounds like you're really in need of self care, and a real break. I know you might think that you don't need or deserve a break because you aren't studying right now, but I imagine you're feeling guilt and thinking about exams a lot of the time which is making studying a lot harder to do. For me I felt a lot of anxiety when I wasn't studying, and wouldn't know where to start when I tried to

Are you eating, drinking and sleeping properly? Have you spent time with your friends or family lately? Are you spending time doing things you enjoy and trying to relax? Your mental health is the most important thing right now.. You deserve to take it easy on yourself.

Do you have a group of friends you can study with, or a teacher to talk to about how you're finding things difficult?

Hi,

Thank you for the reassurance. I try to take a day off each week to not study but it's never enough, and everyone I talk to just says to push through cause it's nearly over, but I don't have the energy or motivation to do anything, even though i'm almost done.

I've been eating a lot of comfort food, but i'm sleeping ok. I live with my mum and dad & talk to my mum every day, but i'm not very emotionally close with either of my parents. I live pretty rurally so now i'm on stuvac I haven't left the house by myself in months. I haven't spoken to any of my friends in nearly 2 months, I had a fight with my friend's girlfriend so I just kinda isolated myself. I've scheduled to have a phone call with my careers advisor next week though 🙂

Hi Nikobee,

Fellow HSC student here, I totally understand how you're feeling. Have you applied for SRS or early entry programs? I find that those definitely take a strain off my shoulders. What is your plan post-HSC? Try to remember that the HSC isn't the be-all end-all and there's heaps of alternate pathways into university.

Keep practicing self care and try not to push yourself too much!

Mk2692
Champion Alumni
Champion Alumni

Hi nikobee,

Welcome to the forums. It sounds like you are going through a very stressful time at the moment due to the upcoming exams. I don't know if you have shared this with your family members, I think it would be a good idea as they would be able to provide you with support and also motivation when needed. It sounds like you are very overwhelmed with the amount of work you need to do to prepare for exams. I would suggest to have a planner if you don't already, plan the day with tasks required and prioritise what needs to be done first. Study first, then try practice questions, then try to test yourself. Repetition can help you retain information, so try to repeat all the concepts and do as much as practice as you can. Always try to take breaks when needed to help recharge, if you study non-stop, it can be more overwhelming. Also if there are concepts that you don't understand, maybe tutoring can be useful. There are face to face and online options. Make sure that you also have time for exercise and try to eat healthy as this can help you with your concentration. Remember that these are just exams and it is not the end of your future if you don't do as well as you'd hoped. There are many opportunities to get into the field of study you prefer, do don't be disheartened, just do your best and things will fall into place. Hope this helps.