Depression making doing homework hard

[sidsthename]

Hello, I'm new here. I'm B.

So I've lived with anxiety & depression for a number of years (11 years) and my life has involved waves of one, the other, or sometimes a short period (max 2 months) of stability and happiness.

I have an incredibly supportive family (my mum is my rock) however they are currently away in Europe, and my sister although she lives at home is rarely actually at home. I have a great treatment team (outreach worker & psychiatrist) who are both seeing me weekly and doing everything they can, but I am still struggling quite a bit at the moment.

At the moment my anxiety isn't really an issue, the depression is. I'm so apathetic, unmotivated, lack of concentration, and I am finding it extremely hard to finish my final few assignments. I finish my diploma this week (already finished classes) so got lots of time at home to try and complete my final 3 (HUGE!!!!!) assignments, and I can't even bring myself to do them.
Or when I do, I can only concentrate for 5-10 minutes before my brain just does the thing you know in the video YBB made;

It's incredibly frustrating, and so I'm finding assignments which should take max 8 hours are taking 5 days. I have one due tomorrow, and another due Tuesday, plus my final one due Thursday and my brain is just ughhhhhhhhhhhh


I know I need to keep trying to do them, it's just all really hard. 

[Mr__Brightside]

Hey there. I'm Moriarty. Now your obviously older than me, but here's my two cents worth. When you look at a large amount of work, it's crushing. (at least to me) so try separating the work into sections. Crucial, can leave it for a day etc. You could also try listening to music. Try searching for motivation strategies. (I can't watch YouTube at the moment.) Good luck. ~M

[Narniakid]

Hi B! Welcome to BeyondBlue!

A couple of things I would suggest to help with your lack of motivation is to firstly have a look at the environment in which you are working in - I recently redecorated my bedroom and it is amazing what a difference decor can make to your work attitude. Try lighting some vanilla scented candles and having a couple of nice plants nearby. I also recommend making a mood board full of inspirational quotes, your goals, and places you'd like to go to one day, to help keep you on track of why you're doing what you're doing.

As for your concentration, try to hype yourself up for your assignments with light reading. Make sure you don't have any distractions, turn off your phone and close any social media. Take deep breaths and maybe have a cup of tea next to your laptop to help you stay relaxed. Focus on one thing at a time so you don't get overwhelmed. Take regular breaks but keep a schedule so you don't get off track and you know how long it'll take to get each task done.

Good luck, chin up and stay strong - we believe in you!

Crystal

[shad0wings]

Hey B!

Welcome to BeyondBlue, glad to have you!

11 years is a very long time to suffer like you have - hat off to you, you're pretty damn incredible! 

When having more than one assignment, write down a plan of some sort, dedicate your time to particular tasks. Make the first one that is due your priority, but also dedicate sometime to the other assignments too. If you feel really good about one assignment or have a spontaneous idea, jump on it! Even if you were working on a different one, don't worry about it!

Writing down what you are feeling in a journal of some sort is always incredibly beneficial. It clears large amounts of stress and makes you much more clear-headed. Try your best to clear your mind, if you are feeling too flustered, do something you like for 30 minutes maybe and get back to working. Don't try to do too much too quickly, because you will burn yourself out and become more stressed that way.

Try to think "one step at a time" instead of "multiple steps at a time" - Instead of stressing about when they are due, try to think about the present and what you can do.

Best of luck to you!

~ Taylor 

[SeanM92]

Hey there B,

I can see that your depression is something that is really getting to you, its great to see that you have such a support system there for you, though even then sometimes, when stress can pile up like assignments are getting closer to due date and things like that, it isnt always enough. 

Something I've found that helps alot of people is to have some kind of reward in place, give yourself some incentive to work. anything from a favorite food to watching a favorite show can work, something that you can look forward to at the end of all the work that interests you enough that it will help narrow your focus. it can help get past the depression and any distractions that may make finished your work harder. We all like getting rewarded for our hard work, its only natural.

Its important to remember your not the only person that suffer from these types of things, it could be usefull to maybe look around on the net or even ask some people how they stay focused or if they have any techniques to overcome the depression. You have done a tremendous amount of work and after suffering from depression/anxiety for so long you should be proud. You can pull through it, just gotta find what works for you and stick it out for just that little bit longer, i know you can do it.

Take care B

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi B,

Thanks for reaching out to us!   I’m really glad that you have a good support team as I think that helps a lot 🙂

Congrats on almost finishing your assignments – yayyyy! 

You are so close.  

Here are a few things that really helped me when I got stuck in my studies;

-        Taking lots of breaks (if you can only concentrate for 5-10 minutes, then do that.  Then have a break, and do that again.  It’s OK if it takes you longer.  Try to be patient.)

-        Self care- are you getting enough sleep, eating good food and exercise?  It sounds kind of simple (and cliché) but it does make a difference.

-        Reward yourself.  You are so so close to finishing.  Maybe you could try and study for 10 minutes and then do something you enjoy, like a game. 

-        Think about the end.  Your diploma is so close to finishing.  What is your Diploma in?  What do you want to  do when you finish?  Thinking about the end goal and creating vision boards helped me a lot.

-        Remember that your Diploma is only one part of your life.  Sometimes we can get caught up in the fact it’s so important that we forget about the things that really matter – like what we enjoy, our friends and family.  

Just remember, it’s OK if it takes you longer.   When I did my course I had to do 2 extensions for health reasons; but don’t focus on what should be done.  Just do what you can do and keep on chipping away.

Just keep swimming! 🙂