Functioning *Trig*

[Lwona]

I am determined not to fail my university course. I am doing everything in my power to ensure I meet deadlines and attend as best as I can. That being said, at the moment, things have taken a turn for the worse. I'm not sure why but I seem to be 'textbook' depressed. My appetite is nonexistent, I'm exhausted, getting out of bed feels impossible, yet I'm not sleeping. I have no motivation etc etc. The problem of course is I can't afford to be ill right now. I *need* to get my last few projects sorted and finish this year. I've allowed myself all summer to be 'crazy' I keep trying to do work and I just physically/mentally can't. Even copying up a document from a book took hours and completely drained me.

I guess what I'm trying to get to is, is there anything I can do to improve things temporarily? I have the option of calling my doctor for a medication review, but he wanted me to wait four weeks, and it's only been two so far. I just need something to pick things up enough for me to function. Even if I had the med review, any changes wouldn't kick in for about 6 weeks. I'm just not functioning at the moment, everything feels like it's on autopilot. My head keeps thinking of self harm, of course, but I know that's not a sensible option.

I don't know if there really is an answer for this ramble, I just wish there was something I could do. I feel powerless. I don't want to fail.

[unknown_member]

Hey.. Was your medication changed/increased two weeks ago? Might just be a case of waiting for it to take effect..

Try not to put too much pressure on yourself, if your the same as me, pressure makes me more paralysed in my thinking and I find it harder to function... Take things in small steps...

Also accept help.. Is there someone you can speak to at uni about longer deadlines etc just while you get things back on track?

Has anything changed in your personal life that has contributed to these feelings?

X

[Lwona]

Hey, thanks for replying.

No, my medication hasn't been changed yet. When I saw my doctor two weeks ago, he said to see how things go, and if things haven't improved in about 4 weeks, to call him for a review. I know pressuring myself won't help matters, but it's hard to stop I have extensions available for an extra week. I'm not sure if that will be possible as my current deadline is due before half term, but I can find that out.

I have support staff in uni, but I'm not sure what can be done to help, it feels like there's a huge mental block on everything. I *want* to do work, but I just... can't?

Nothing that I can think of, no. It feels very out of the blue. Usually when I have a slump like this, it would have eased off by now. This feels different, which makes it harder to deal with too.

[unknown_member]

I would def see if you could have a med review then... Sounds like this dip isn't normal for you, for it to last this long... Medication isn't the answer to everything but talking therapies Can take a long time to get started and work, so maybe a change in meds would help?

X

[Lwona]

Thanks, I'll contact him tomorrow. I understand the importance of waiting to see how things go, but I can't afford to be incapacitated at the moment. Hopefully something can be done. Thanks for the replies xx

[Candy84]

The support workers at uni might be able to help with strategies to get through work without it being a huge mountain to climb all in one go.  I heard about something called the Pomodoro technique which is a method of breaking work down into manageable chunks and having regular breaks.  Could be worth a go?  I know what it's like to spend hours doing one thing and feeling like you're getting nowhere xx