AcADDemia

This masterpost is requested by @piiess

As we continue to commemorate World Mental Health Day, let us continue to remember that “It’s okay not to be okay.”

Dealing with mental health while studying

Saving your grades from a mental health crisis by @smartstudy

Chronic illness + studying by @studysenior

Coping with mental health by @overstudies

A few bad feelings and how to beat them

Tips for surviving college (with a mental illness) by @annafreuds

Healthy body, healthy mind staying fit while exercising the brain by @scolae

Stop glorifying unhealthy study habits by @thestudyingnightowl

Studying with mental illness by @linamstudies

Studying with mental illness by @harlostudies

Studying with a mental illness by @student-succulent

Romanticizing mental illness is dangerous and misleading by @daddyslittlwprincess118

Helping your mentally ill friends through exam periods: masterpost by @celeztialstudies

Managing mental illness as a student by @medkip

Mental health and university how to deal with a bad week a masterpost by @milsostudy

How to (realistically) study when your mental illness doesn’t want you to by @midiluc

Autism

How to cope with loud fireworks if you’re autistic

Burnout

How to deal with study burnout by @eintsein

How to avoid education burnout by @neuroticmedblr

Tips for avoiding burnout and staying motivated by @coffeesforstudiers

Burnout 101 by @polcry

Overcoming burnout while continuing to study by @rewritign

Avoiding burnout by @acdemic

Eating disorder

Recovery record by @agent-hardass

Dyslexia

Dyslexia masterpost by @izzystudies

ADHD

Studying with adhd by @glowsoleil

Apps for disorganised +/or ADHD students by @studiix

ADHD resources by @psychlu

Depression

Study tips whilst dealing with depression by @sdklfhdsdkfjhg

Studying with depression by @rannedomblr

Studying with depression by @notquitenightingale

Struggling with depression while in school by @inactivegardenum

Depression/executive dysfunction cleaning tips by @dormouse11

Depression tips by @lesbiananabray

Advice for severe depression and anxiety and executive dysfunction by @urie

Advice for dealing with long term depression and anxiety by @13chancess

Things I never knew about depression until I finally had a doctor explain the disease to me by @academicfeminist

Tips for someone who also battles with depression by @bloggerforstudentprogress-blog

Bullet journaling with depression by @littleninjastudies

Anxiety

Coping with anxiety by @hufflepuffwannabe

Coping with anxiety by @sheisrecovering

Coping statements for anxiety by @onlnecounsellingcollege

Anxiety attacks aren’t always hyperventilating and rocking back and forth by @ugly-bread

Anxiety distraction games by @peachou

Anxiety masterpost by @dotgrids

Why doing something relaxing does not help with your anxiety by @merrybitchmas91

Living and studying with anxiety by @hayley-studies

Dealing with test anxiety by @studybuzz

Study sounds by @studyquill

Mood disorder

What is a “mood disorder” anyway? by @battle-with-bipolar

Meditation

Meditation and focus

Selfcare

A very brief guide to self-care by @ejlandsman

Some self-care/mental health tips for the upcoming school year by @badvogues

Ways to practice selfcare by @librarystudies

Resources

Apps for your mental health by @highlightcrs

Mental illness apps by @recoverywarriorx

Some reminders

Mental health is just as important as physical health by @cwote

Don’t let your mind bully your body

There’s a difference between: pushing yourself and pushing yourself pass your limit by @chibird

Your life can look so different, so much better, in just a few months. keep going by @studyblr

Reminder: you can’t change the past and worrying makes you suffer twice. we all forget that once in a while.

Remember that time you thought you wouldn’t survive? Well you did and you can do it again

You aren’t a problem that needs to be solved

You are not unloveable

Mental health first, everything will follow

I may not be there yet but i’m closer than i was yesterday

Everything you feel is real

Allow yourself to recover

You matter

It’s a disorder, not a decision

Its okay if the only thing you did today was survive

Focus on the good

Stop beating yourself up. You didn’t do anything wrong

Hey, it’s not your fault

You don’t have to justify your emotions to anyone

Never apologise for how you feel

Other masterposts by me 

Selfcare

Apps for students

Literature

Ace your essays

Chinese

I’m curious. The way my school does it, I only have to take Phonetics, Phonology, Historical, and a Syntax class. No pragmatics, no Morphology (even though thats KINDA included with phonology) and no semantics.

Instead, you take like 4 classes as electives within linguistics, and those are whatever subjects the faculty like to teach. 

My electives were Bilingual Minds (a Psycholinguistics class), Bilingual First Language Acquisition (a language acquisition class, cross disciplinary in Linguistics terms), and a class called Why Chinese has No Alphabet (historical class about Chinese Orthography). I still need to take one more and I’m debating between Neurolinguistics and Computational. I would also love a sociolinguistics class tbh. (I know one of the professors I am working with is working on a course called Latinx Linguistic Repertoires and I am so excited for it).

potential electives include morphology, field methods, graduate level courses, language- and linguistics-related classes in other departments (eg. linguistic anthropology, NLP, philosophy of language, history of the spanish language), and whatever miscellaneous elective seminars that professors decide to teach that semester (eg. prosody, L2 acquisition).

Alrighty, I am in need of more studyblrs to follow. If any of the following apply to you, reblog so I can follow you. I feel like going on a following spree.

You’re a new studyblr

You’re a small studyblr

You’re a STEM studyblr

You post original content that’s NOT “aesthetic”

You’re considered a nontraditional student

You’re a DREAMer

This includes students who can’t write it all, students who can write but have difficulty writing neatly enough for others to read, students for whom handwriting is painful or fatiguing, and probably some other people as well. Remember that disability is almost never a binary thing; it’s totally valid to need help with tasks that involve handwriting even if you technically can write some.

These tips are aimed mainly at undergraduate students in the US, though high school students and graduate students may also find some of them useful, as may some people in other parts of the world.

These tips come primarily from my own experiences completing an undergraduate degree in math with a very limited ability to write. Remember that everyone’s body and experiences are different. You should consider these tips just as some suggestions or a starting place towards finding what works for you.

Get registered with the disability services office on your campus. If you are struggling to write, then you have a disability. It doesn’t really matter what the underlying reason is, as long as you can get a doctor to write a letter for you stating your challenges and limitations. 

Depending on your school, disability services may be great or they may be useless. If they’re great, take advantage. If not, being registered with the office still give you official standing to go talk to your instructors about what you need.

Talk to your professors/TAs/other instructors at the beginning of each semester. I’ve written a general guide on how to do this, an email template for a meeting request, and some thoughts on communicating chronic pain in particular.  (Note: you don’t have to share the particulars of your disability if you don’t want to!  I have generally been pretty open about mine, so that’s what I can give better advice about.  But you should, of course, make your own decisions!)

Stay in communication with your instructors throughout the semester. It’s always good practice to remind your instructors about your accommodations before any test/exam/field trip/other event where you need accommodations. And of course, ask for help in the course if you need it. Go to office hours. If your professor knows that you are an actual person, they are far more likely to be willing to work with you.

Set boundaries. Especially if you have some ability to write, you may be tempted to try to do more writing than your body can handle. This might be because other people are pressuring you to be “normal,” because you are pressuring yourself to be “normal”, because it is a hassle to deal with getting appropriate accommodations in your classes, because you are embarrassed to ask for help, etc. For this reason, it is really important to know your own boundaries before you enter the classroom. For example:

“I will sign documents, but that’s all the writing I’m going to do.”

“I will handwrite things like homework, when I can set my own pace and use the right tools for me, but I will try to handwrite anything in a classroom with time constraints.”

“I will stop writing when the pain level in my hands reaches a 5 on a 10 point pain scale.”

“I will complete multiple-choice tests and quizzes/exams requiring one or two word answers, but I won’t write anything longer than that.”

Get your accommodations in order. Exactly what accommodations will work for each person is of course a very individual thing, but here are some that you might consider/discuss with your disability services counselor:

a notetaker in your classes (usually just a peer who give you a copy of their notes after class),

using assistive technology (some examples below) for in class assignments/quizzes/exams,

working with a scribe for tests and exams,

working with a scribe for handwritten homework,

flexibility on assignment deadlines (when handwriting would be required in any part of the process of completing the assignment),

extra time for quizzes and exams (either because your handwriting is slow or because you are using assistive technology that is slower than handwriting),

unlimited untimed breaks during tests and exams (if you struggle with pain or fatigue, this gives you an opportunity to rest, stretch out your muscles, etc.).

Consider assistive technology. These are tools that you can use in class, on your homework, and/or on tests and exams. The possibilities vary from low-tech and simple to more high-tech and expensive. If you have access, an occupational therapist or assistive technology specialist can help you find good options for you. 

Here are some things to consider to make any writing you choose to do easier:

grips for your pencils/pens (there are lots and lots of these, and you can even use hair curlers),

a slant board to better position your paper, using a different writing instrument (soft leaded artists’ pencils, felt tip pens, markers, gel ballpoint pens have been helpful for me),

using an electric eraser if you write in pencil and need to erase often,

using some tool to keep your paper from sliding (e.g. a clipboard, slant board with a clip, Dycem on your desk underneath notebook/clipboard, using weights on your paper),

writing on a chalkboard or whiteboard instead of paper, physical supports for your forearm, a tool that helps hold the pencil/pen for you (e.g. this or this or this).

And some assistive technology to consider as a replacement for handwriting (used all the time or just sometimes depending on your needs): typing your work instead of writing by hand (perhaps with an ergonomic or otherwise alternative keyboard), speech to text software (Windows now includes this in the OS, so all you have to do is buy a headset), an eye gaze keyboard (this technology has come down and cost a lot in the past couple years, check out OptiKey if you are interested).

If you get into a tough position where you aren’t sure how to complete an assignment with your disability-related limitations, ask for help! Generally speaking, it’s best to start with your professor or TA, though of course the disability services office may also be able to help. (The details will depend a lot on the people involved, so use your own best judgment.) Be clear when you’re talking to these people that you’re looking for help solving a problem, not asking to be excused from a course requirement.

Sometimes the standard accommodations that your school is willing/able to provide won’t work for you. This could be because the accommodations are simply inadequate, because a particular course or field of study has challenges that the disability services office does not understand/did not anticipate, because you have many limitations due to multiple illnesses or disabilities, or for many other reasons. In this case, you have to get creative and enlist help from your allies. I can’t give you a formula for this, but I will share some of the more unusual accommodations that I have received at various times. Perhaps they will give you some ideas.

For a few of my math courses, I obtained permission from the instructor to turn in a joint homework assignment with a peer. I think this request was approved largely because I had been a student in the math department for a few years, the professors knew both me and the other student, and we were both very strong students who had a genuine desire to learn the material.

For many math courses, I completed my homework assignments by working the problems on my own (or with peers when allowed) and taking very succinct to notes for myself. I then had a scheduled time each week to meet with the professor and explain my solutions.

I’ve taken lots and lots of oral exams, especially in math.

I have submitted tape-recorded “essays” on exams in humanities courses.

• I’m proud of you. The education system works against us at every turn but you’re still hanging in there, and that’s amazing. 

• Long term goals are lovely but they won’t motivate you. ADHD brains know two times: now and not now. Long term goals fall under “not now”, so if you try to use them to motivate yourself your brain won’t buy it. Some things that help me get motivated: using coloured pens, bringing a tasty drink like juice or pop to my desk, playing music I can sing along to. 

• Get. Diagnosed. With an official diagnosis, you can access accommodations through your school. You don’t have to struggle through school being held to neurotypical standards. You can get things like extra time on tests, extensions on assignments, access to digital copies of textbooks so you can use text-to-speech software, the ability to write tests and exams in a smaller room with fewer distractions, noise cancelling headphones during tests. I live in Ontario so I can’t guarantee all of these things in other places, but you’ll never know what accommodations are available to you until you apply for them. 

• Work for the amount of time that you can. You can only handle five minutes? Do work for those five minutes. You can stretch it out to fifteen minutes today? Awesome! It’s excruciating for us to get work done without it being a crisis, I know. But doing work in small increments every day goes a long way. Doing nothing because you can’t work as long as a neurotypical is just going to leave you with more work to do the night before. 

• Keep fidgets and/or stim toys at your desk. If you get overwhelmed or can’t focus, grab a fidget and allow yourself to just sit and fidget for a little bit. Tactile stim toys are my favourite since they’re very grounding for me.

The Lithium Ion Theory

You might have heard of the Spoon Theory, an analogy to explain energy when living with a chronic illness. However, recently I decided to go on a soul-search of how I would describe living with the energy levels and other issues that come with a chronic illness. After some thought, I came up with something I would call the “Lithium Ion Theory”, just because I like to be complicated ;) We can’t get any cutsie name out of it, like “spoonie” for its followers, but that’s fine, because living with chronic illness isn’t cute, and it often is complicated.

So, what is this “Lithium Ion Theory”? To put it simply, it’s just the use of battery levels to measure energy levels with a chronic illness. But this battery isn’t just any battery – it’s an lithium ion (Li-ion) battery. The standard battery, an alkaline battery, can be used once, and then discarded, and they tend to be cheaper. However, Li-ion batteries, the typical rechargeable type, vary from alkalines and relate very closely to chronic illnesses. I have six main comparisons of Li-ion batteries to chronic illnesses that I could think of right off the bat.

First, most lithium ion batteries are known to be rechargeable, but loose charge pretty quickly with use, and don’t necessarily charge to 100%.

Sleep = recharge. Ideally, after sleeping, my battery level would be at 100%, but that isn’t always the case, especially on bad chronic illness days. If I haven’t slept well or didn’t get enough sleep (or overdid it the day before), it’s almost as if my battery barely charged overnight. When you’re chronically ill, you’re lucky if you make it up to 90% or so overnight, but you’re usually even lower upon waking.

Second, each use of a device depletes battery levels.

As with any battery, each action that I complete throughout the day can drain my battery little by little. Something like making and eating breakfast may take 2-3%, however, something like showering or driving may take closer to 10%. An exhausting school day, a day at work, or a day where my anxiety has kept me in a panic can completely drain my battery. Every action depletes the battery, and the amounts for each vary day by day and by how much effort I put into everything. Something as simple as the weather can determine how efficient I am throughout the day.

Third, it’s harder to use Li-ion batteries when they’re charging or at critically low levels.

Now we all know what happens when iPhone batteries hit 20% – they alert you and you can choose to go into “low battery mode”. Activities performed while under 20% when low battery mode isn’t enabled drains the battery extra quick, and activities performed when it is enabled end up taking a longer and aren’t happening at full capacity. When those with chronic illnesses are low on energy, even the smallest task can drain energy faster, and might even be impossible to do (you cannot install an app when you’re under 50%!). And it’s very discouraged to use Li-ion batteries (like the ones in your phone), when you’re charging because it can damage the battery. If someone with a chronic illness is relaxing and trying to “recharge”, doing tasks – no matter how small – can be damaging to their energy improvement or physical/mental wellbeing.

Fourth, Li-ion batteries need a protection circuit to be considered safe for use.

I like to relate this factor to chronic illness because, oftentimes, those with chronic illnesses need “safety features” in their lives. These safety features are things such as medications, specialty appointments (like physical therapy), medical devices (like canes, wheelchairs, braces, etc), and/or medical adaptations (car adaptations, bathroom adaptations) to stay safe or as healthy as possible.

Fifth, Li-ion batteries tend to be more expensive compared to other batteries.

Anyone living with a chronic illness knows it’s much more expensive compared to the healthy life, as do Li-ion batteries in comparison to other batteries. Outside of things fully covered by insurance or government aid, the costs of living with a chronic illness is not for the faint of heart, and you don’t get to choose whether you pay for this stuff like you would in electing to buy a rechargeable battery over a cheaper one. With better private insurance, extra doctors’ appointments, medications, equipment, etc, you have bills that the healthy person never dreams about.

Sixth, Li-ion batteries exert more energy (from a scientific standpoint) when powering things.

And last, but definitely not least, doing activities while chronically ill can take much more out of us than it would your typical healthy person, even when we’re at higher battery levels. Again, I mention something as small as brushing your teeth – in a healthy person, it might not even take .5% away from their energy levels where it could take something like 3% away from someone with a chronic illness. A long walk/run with some mild inclines might take 10-20% of energy in a healthy person (depending on how active the person is in general), whereas it could take 50% (if not more) in someone with a chronic illness that is able to stay semi-active.

But don’t healthy people experience this energy depletion? In a way, I guess, but not to the full extent. Healthy people tend to start their day at 100%, unless they’ve forgotten to plug in (i.e. didn’t get enough sleep or are acutely sick), and usually don’t require the same amount of physical or mental exertion on most activities that they would with a chronic illness. They would use this analogy in the same way that healthy people could technically use spoons from the Spoon Theory to describe their energy levels. EVERYONE knows how healthy people experience energy loss, but they don’t go through life having to weigh whether or not the activities that they want to will take too much out of them until they reach lower energy level amounts, so do they really need an analogy to explain it?

I dislike the Spoon Theory for many reasons, which was why I went on the search for a more appropriate-to-my-life analogy. To each their own, but I’d rather be able to explain my energy levels as a sick person in a way that most people can relate to than to use an analogy with silverware. I’m sure even the most established “spoonie” might agree that Li-ion batteries parallel much more to the lives of the chronically ill, but, when it comes down to it, energy levels of a chronic illness sufferer are the same no matter how you phrase it!

Hey guys so if you didn’t know I have a paypal. All you do is go to my blog and there it is. My sister and I are both disabled and I have a service dog. Last month I was in the hospital and the month before our house flooded leaving us homeless until mid October. I’ve been struggling to buy enough food for Pippi and been dipping into the food money I get every two week from family. I can’t eat orally bc I’m not sure. But my sister still needs to eat and my feeding tube formula is really expensive. Insurance doesn’t cover it and every two week is $322 of formula. If y’all feel called to I would really appreciate donations.

I can try my best to provide something in return such as like a drawing. I’m not good at art but maybe. I could write you a card. I don’t know. My sister makes medical masks. That instagram is called Vestsforthebest we also make service dog gear so you can support us there.

REBLOG TO SAVE A BLOG (DO IT FOR YOUR OWN BLOG!)

You’re missing out on heaps of original study tips posts and heaps of great stuff by creators, not just me! My study tips are really detailed but can be specific at times, I don’t want to have to resort to poorer quality posts or clickbait titles to bring in the activity :’( 

Studyblrs are one of the biggest communities on tumblr, we can make a difference!

@staff please remove this feature! I’m an original study tips maker and this killed my activity! Tumblr is about original creators as much as reblogging, and having this option on will mean only the popular bloggers get featured more and more. It’ll be so much harder for new studyblrs to get a foot in!

Reblog to protect your own original content from being filtered! 

i’ve answered this a lot, but unfortunately no, i dont

i don’t handle uni well at all + have never coped with any educational setting well and my performance and commitment and motivation fluctuates rapidly because i struggle so much

the small things i try and do are

remain really disciplined in my routines to make bad and good days easier

communicate openly and honestly with my tutors *** cannot emphasise this enough, it makes all the difference to have a tutor on your side + aware of your situation and needs

let myself rest when i need to, no matter what’s due + despite any pressing academic responsibilities 

visual prompts stuck up around my apartment to help with executive dysfunction

working for as long as possible when i do feel good

keeping a planner so that even if i’m behind in work, im aware of everything happening, whats coming up, whats overdue etc

being aware of quiet places i can escape to in uni if i need a few minutes/half an hour to myself

recognising within myself when i’ve reached my daily limit while at uni (i struggle with the studio being too loud + can feel when im about to become too overloaded and should go home to continue working)

recently i’ve found a couple of things that help me focus better + actually remain focused for a while- a yellowy/orange lamp, crunchy snacks on my desk, using the noisli app + i make sure to always do/have these whether at uni or at home to create a ‘working routine’ so that (hopefully) my brain recognises the steps and cooperates 

i take small stims to class with me to help me focus and process when the lecturer is talking

even though i have a planner i often find it useful to use a scrap piece of to ‘dump my brain’ on- i write down any uni stuff that is worrying me, anything overdue, anything coming up (i just jot down all my uni thoughts basically). 

i also find it beneficial to have another/separate weekly to-do list sheet to use alongside my planner, where i have more room and can write down everything i want to do (like chores and errands or  (more importantly) roughly plan out what uni work/modules i want to focus on on which days of the week)

thats all i can think of for now honestly, but hopefully it will help a bit! on my study blog i tag all autistic posts with “autistic-things” (link) so there might be some useful info there!

He asked somebody to raise their hand and ask him when we would use calculus in our everyday life. So one student rose their hand and asked, “When are we going to use this in our everyday life?”

“NEVER!!” the teacher exclaimed. “You will never use calculus in your normal, everyday life. In fact, very few of you will use it in your professional careers either.” Then he paused. “So would you like to know why should care?”

Several us nodded.

He picked out one of the varsity football players in the class. “You practice football a lot during the week, right Tim?” asked the teacher.

“Yeah,” replied Tim. “Almost every day.”

“Do you and your teammates ever lift weights during practice?”

“Yeah. Tuesdays and Thursdays we spend a lot of practice in the weight room.”

“But why?” asked the teacher. “Is there ever going to be a play your coach tells you use during a game that requires you to bench press the other team?”

“No, of course not.”

“Then why lift weights?”

“Because it makes us stronger,” said Tim.

“Bingo!!” said the teacher. “It’s the same thing with calculus. You’re not here because you’re going to use calculus in your everyday life. You’re here because calculus is weightlifting for your brain.”

100 Days of Productivity 35/100. (I had to look it up.)

This is what my bed looked like today, when I could no longer sit upright at my desk by about 2pm today.

I achieved five hours of work (which is a complete miracle on the five hours of sleep I had last night and the waking up at 5am and the meltdown in the local council offices and all sorts of fun). Didn’t manage the 3-2 ratio - it was more like 3 hours reading, 1.5 hour writing, some other work stuff. Could be a lot worse though.

Staying on that ‘5 hours a day’ train yes we are!

a few years ago i was in graduate school studying writing, working during the day and taking classes at night. i was also quite ill with a flareup of multiple chronic conditions. work and school used me up. i had nothing left with which to care for myself. i was often too weak and tired to shower, shop for groceries, or do laundry. i walked around feeling and looking like a wraith. i dragged myself into the classroom when i could make it there at all. for once, my disability felt quite visible.

there was a lovely man named stefan in some of my classes. he was reserved, courteous, and astonishingly kempt. he dressed himself with such style and care that it made me happy just to look at him. you know the type–you pass them on the street and you just feel warm inside, knowing somebody that swanky is out there.

the night we workshopped stefan’s short story i told him i thought it was cool. he blushed. he actually blushed.

cool? he said. no. you’re cool. 

i goggled at him.

he pointed under the table at my feet, so humiliating in their mismatched ankle socks, one hot pink, one neon green.

so cool, he said. so cool. 

he was completely serious.

every time i go out in public and feel self-conscious about looking like hell, i think about stefan and how the whole time i’d envied his meticulous pleats he was watching me, admiring how few fucks i seemed to give.