Getting through college with mental health issues
&I am a mentally-ill student who has struggled with school since high school. Over high school and a year and a half of university, I’ve found this is what works for me.
This is a guide of things you can do for yourself, but I am no mental health professional and I always recommend seeking a professional to help you.
Your mental illness and the stress of school just makes things difficult for you, but it isn’t impossible.
You’re allowed to fail and make mistakes - you’re only human. You are more than your illness and you are so much better than you realize.
Take care of yourself. You deserve it. Your mental health is more important than academics. And your mental state won’t last forever.
Deal with your mental illness!
Medication. Medication is an important part of recovery. Don’t be afraid to try medication if your doctor suggests it. Medication will balance your out-of-whack brain chemicals so you can work on taking care of yourself. It’s a trial-and-error process and you will find what works for you after some trials.
Get professional help. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Seek a counselor/therapist who works well with you. There should be a myriad of mental health resources on campus, and if not, check the Internet or your local community.
Journal. Or draw. Or play music. Express yourself creatively to get those emotions out. Friends/family won’t always be available for you, so learn to deal with your emotions by yourself.
Let your professors/TAs know. Hopefully you have some sort of accommodations plan set up with the university, but if not, DO IT. I don’t like to disclose my mental illnesses to them, but I let them know my academic struggles.
Do not fall behind - stay as productive as possible.
Try to go to class no matter what, no matter how anxious or depressed you feel. Unless you’re so sick that you can barely pay attention in class, try to attend class. You can always leave early if you need to. If class makes you anxious, go anyway to train yourself that you’re safe, you’re okay, and it’s never as bad as it seems. Here are some tips on how to stay calm at school. The mere act of going to class can give you a boost. Try paying attention and be productive. Don’t worry about taking in absolutely everything the prof says. Just take the time to learn. Use relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing (in four seconds, hold four seconds, out eight seconds), tense and release your muscles, count down from 100, etc. If all else fails, doodle things related to the lecture. You’ll feel better.
Skipped a lot of class? Get back on track in one day.
Write everything down! I can’t stress this enough. Whether it’s a planner app on your phone or a bullet journal or a cheap planner from the dollar store or even a sticky note on your wall, keep track of everything you need to do. Make to-do lists. If you’re easily overwhelmed, write down only three things you need to do that day. Make it as simple as possible. Check your planner every day. You don’t want to miss a deadline because you forgot it.
Do something everyday. Anything, even tidying your desk, to give you a sense of accomplishment, to not give you a “zero day” and make things worse. Just do that thing. Review your notes every so often, even if it’s only for 5 minutes. If you have a big assignment to do, break it down and work on it a little bit.
How to start working when you don’t really feel like it
Use the 2-minute rule(s). This is probably the most effective rule I’ve ever used. If it takes you less than 2 minutes to do something, do it right now and finish it.
There is another rule with this name: only do the task for 2 minutes. If you can’t get started on something, just do it for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, you can stop. Chances are, you’ll keep doing the task for more than 2 minutes. And if you don’t? Take a break and try again. You’ll get something done.
Start on an assignment right away. Even if it’s just an outline for what you plan to do with it. Or make a very rough draft to edit.
Set fake deadlines. Your essay might be due in a month, but your outline for your essay is due a week after today, your research notes due a week after that, and a draft a week after that. Write down deadlines 2-3 days before they’re due. You can use those extra days to edit and have someone (your peer, a TA, an older student, the prof) look over it.
Get ahead. If you get ahead right away, by the time you fall behind you’re just on track. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve done this, had breakdowns, and still managed to hand things in on time.
Ask for deadlines early. This is the one thing I have difficulty with. If you need extra time, ask ahead. You might not always get the extra time, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. Professors tend to be very understanding.
Are you behind anyway? Get back on track in one day.
Need to get a lot done near the end of the semester? Use this guide.
Make a “self-help kit”. Write down reasons why you need to study. Print out pictures of pictures and quotes that inspire you. Write down self-care ideas. Write down songs that make you feel better. Print out self-help guides that pertain to your mental illness(es). This kit is something you will refer to when you need a pick-me-up and you can’t bother your friends/family/significant other. (You can, however, always bother your pet.) Here are some pictures from my kit to help you get started:
Understand that motivation is a finite resource. You will never be motivated all the time. Don’t feel bad if you’re having a “blah” day. Don’t feel bad if you have a “blah” week. This is where the self-help kit comes in handy - you can motivate yourself right away rather than breaking down.
Don’t be hard on yourself. You are capable of great things, but not when your mental illness(es) have a grip on you and you can’t shake it off, no matter how hard you try. You will probably have bad days, and that’s okay. Don’t let it deplete your motivation.
Your brain may be hectic, but your workspace and your life doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to be super-organised - whatever works for you, do it.
You want to be organised so you can avoid unnecessary stress and wasting time. When you’re organised, you can be more productive and have a better sense of inner peace. Plus, an aesthetically-pleasing study environment can help you boost your mood!
Here are some posts to help you get started.
The Only Organisation Tips You’ll Ever Need
How to get organized (tips from a horrible procrastinator)
How I Organize by learhning
Organisation masterpost by elk-studies
Get enough sleep. Sleep is very important for your mental health. You want sleep to help you consolidate the information you’ve learned in school. And you’ll feel so much less stressed out.
Obviously this won’t always happen, especially around the end of the semester, but put in effort to get good sleep. Generally, you’ll want to use your bed only for sleeping and relaxing. Try to go to bed at the same time every night and wake up at around the same time. Here are some tips on how to sleep easy.
Eat properly. You need to fuel your brain! Don’t binge, and don’t forget to eat. Try to eat some fruits and veggies every day. Eat regularly and drink a lot of water. This all sounds cliche but it really works and good foods really help you feel better. Feeling physically healthy, at least for me, helps me mentally as well.
You don’t have to eat healthy all the time. You can eat junk food to de-stress. Don’t feel guilty for eating junk food. The point is to have a good balance. Just don’t make your entire diet junk food, and you should be fine.
You don’t have to spend a lot of time on your food. Here are some tips for eating when you have zero time.
Exercise! For the mentally ill, exercising is often the last thing we want to do, but exercise just has too many benefits to not do it. You don’t even have to go to the gym. Take walks and do some simple exercises in your room. There are so many workout videos on YouTube - my personal favourite is blogilates, but they’re perfect if you feel too anxious at the gym. Go with friends to the gym if you can. Try to do something every day if you can, but even a couple days a week should help.
Write down things you need to do. Self-care is all about staying healthy and doing things you need to do (eg. chores), even when you don’t want to. You can always enlist the help of friends/family, but independence is key when they’re not available. If I feel like there’s too many things I need to do, I pause everything, take out a piece of paper, and write down basically everything that needs to get done. Then I tackle each item, one at a time. Even if you don’t finish the list, you’ve gotten things done, and there’s less on your mind.
Don’t study everyday. You want to do something productive everyday, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be studying. Use 1-2 days of the week where you don’t study. This will help avoid burnout.
Here are some self-care posts that I recommend:
What to do when you don’t know what to do
Comic for when you’re feeling overwhelmed
Masterpost for rough times
Other resources for getting through college with mental illness(es):
How to conquer college with mental illness
Neurodivergent and Studying: Tips & Resources
College and Chronic Illness: 19 Tips to Study Strong and Fight the Fog
A self-care masterpost to get you through school
Studying while dealing with stress/anxiety/mental health issues
Study Tips: Overcoming Anxiety
What not to do when studying with stress/anxiety
Ways to Avoid Burnout at University
How to be productive when you’re anxious
Coping with Depression at University
21 Tips to Keep Your Shit Together When You’re Depressed
Tips from bloggerforstudentprogress
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