some tips if you're mentally ill and just trying to scrape through university
(for reference, i'm still only a first year and this is just what i've found works for me. im also in humanities, and don't write any exams, so my advice might not work for everyone.)
1. don't even look at supplementary readings. write them down or save them somewhere along with what topic/module they're related to so you can use them as references if you have an essay on that topic. a lot of the time you probably don't even need to do primary readings; the lecturer will go over the most important stuff in the lecture.
2. make a list of the bare minimum you need to do each week. for me this is attending tutorials - because of covid everything else is still asynchronous for me, so for participation marks i just need to show up to tutorials and do the weekly questions. i can catch up on other stuff when i need it for assignments.
3. take your meds (if you have them). set alarms, set multiple alarms, ask a friend to bug you about it, whatever. i have too many times fallen into the trap of forgetting my meds because i feel like i don't need them, getting too depressed to take them, and then getting even more depressed, and having no motivation to work. my meds always help more than i think they do.
4. get a study buddy. this doesn't even have to be someone in the same courses as you! they don't even have to be a student. just get someone to sit in a room with you, or be on a video/voice call, and hold you accountable. for adhd people this is like a hack to our brains! no clue why, but for many of us it seems that just having someone else in the room (or on a phone call) makes it way easier to avoid procrastinating.
5. water and food! especially if you're on adhd meds, make sure to eat before you take them, or have something to snack on while you work. i often forget to eat and then wonder why my brain feels like slush. (also, have a big water bottle so you don't have to fill it up as much).
6. don't worry about your notes looking pretty. this has honestly been one of the hardest things i've had to get over, for some reason. i really enjoy making pretty notes, but they just aren't practical for my brain, especially now i'm in university. because of adhd, my brain doesn't remember shit if i just wrote it down once. instead, i've started focusing on just getting down key words and phrases, with a simple two-colour highlighting system (colour 1: main heading; colour 2: subheading; colour 1: key words/definitions). this way i can easily find what im looking for when im referencing my notes for an assignment. (NB: since i don't write exams, i don't need to memorise anything - if you do need to do this, i recommend flashcards; either physical ones or quizlet).
7. talk to your lecturers/tutors! not all of them are gonna be nice, but more often than not, i've found my lecturers and tutors to be very understanding and accommodating (although i might just be lucky). if you can, ask older students about which lecturers and tutors are lenient and if there are any you should avoid. i've found that especially since tutors tend to be younger (and often are students themselves), they're very understanding with mental health. if your university has a disability service, sign up with them if you can, and inform your professors at the start of the semester that you may need extensions on assignments due to [insert mental illness/medical problem]. if you tell them in advance, they'll probably be more likely to hand out an extension or give you leeway.
8. this has gotten long, so im gonna end it here with: go easy on yourself. uni is hard enough without also being mentally ill, and the fact that you're even trying to do it is impressive. you're working three times as hard as other people, and it can be frustrating when it doesn't feel like you're getting results that represent the effort you've put in. i'm proud of you, even if you haven't managed to get any work done.
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