nothing hurts me like i hurt myself

Psychosis for me, started out pretty slowly. The negative symptoms came first, then the positive symptoms. Negative in this connotation means to take something away, while positive is adding something that shouldn’t be there. Examples are loss of energy, and delusions, respectively.

Recently I made a Tumblr post that contained a list of actions you should undertake when someone is hallucinating. This article is going to be a bit different from that. See, the tricky part is, just because someone is hallucinating, doesn’t mean they’re in a state of psychosis. A person with a psychotic disorder can hallucinate and be fully aware of it, or, in a psychotic state, no part of their brain will be telling them that what they’re experiencing isn’t normal, therefore, they won’t know they’re hallucinating. This article will focus on what steps you should take when someone close to you is in a psychotic state.

The first thing you need to do is clear the area of anything the psychotic person might harm themselves with. The urge to harm oneself is a positive symptom of psychosis that is very common. On top of the urge, it’s also common to hear voices demanding self harm take place. Remove sharp objects. It’s best if there’s no objects in their hand either. You may need to grab a pillow or cushion in case they start to punch themselves. If you are near a road, try to gently guide them away from it so they don’t give in to any voices that may be telling them to jump into traffic. Close windows if you’re up high. They may be told or have the urge to jump.

Stay with the person. This should be obvious. Don’t leave them on their own.

Talk to the person. They may not respond or be confused by what you’re saying, but try to bring them back to reality by talking to them. Use their name clearly and often. Tell them where they are. Tell them what the date is. Tell them anything about what’s happening right then and there to keep them in reality and not in their head.

Offer food or water to the person. This is a grounding technique. The taste or sensation of eating food will likely give them a clue about something that’s real and remind them what’s happening in the now.

Don’t agree with their delusions or hallucinations. This is a common mistake people make when they don’t know what to do. Don’t act like their delusions are real or you are also experiencing their hallucinations. If you don’t know how to respond against this, just simply tell them no.

Hi! I’ve been listening to a lot of music lately to take my mind off stuff, so I thought I’d make a post of songs about mental health issues. I’ve categorised them by what aspect of mental health they refer to, and the songs in the categories with // in front of them may be triggering to people who suffer from these problems (or have in the past). If you have any more suggestions, send them to me and I’ll add them in.

//Songs about Suicide

Better Off Dead by Sleeping with Sirens

Adam’s Song by Blink-182

Goner by Twenty One Pilots

Fake You Out by Twenty One Pilots

Dead! by My Chemical Romance

Cemetery Drive by My Chemical Romance

Migraine by Twenty One Pilots

I’m Low on Gas and You Need a Jacket by Pierce the Veil

King for a Day by Pierce the Veil (feat. Kellin Quinn)

My Last Breath by Evanescence

Like You by Evanescence

Breathe No More by Evanescence

Missing by Evanescence

Friend, Please by Twenty One Pilots

One Less Heart to Break by Patent Pending

7 Minutes in Heaven (Atavan Halen) by Fall Out Boy (it’s not very obvious, but it’s about Pete Wentz’s suicide attempt)

Bullet by Hollywood Undead

//Songs about Depression

I’m Not Okay (I Promise) by My Chemical Romance

HeavyDirtySoul by Twenty One Pilots

Addict with a Pen by Twenty One Pilots

The Kids Aren’t Alright by Fall Out Boy

What a Catch, Donnie by Fall Out Boy

Far Too Young to Die by Panic! at the Disco

The End. by My Chemical Romance

This is How I Disappear by My Chemical Romance

Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day

Left Alone by Sleeping with Sirens

Madness by Sleeping with Sirens

Not Today by Twenty One Pilots

Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush (although I prefer the Placebo cover)

Going Under by Evanescence

Bring Me To Life by Evanescence

Whisper by Evanescence

Lithium by Evanescence

Thoughtless by Korn

Freak on a Leash by Korn

Self care routine and tips~

for a lot of us, it seems nearly impossible to find a balance between our grades and our health. i’ve created a list of tips and resources for managing classwork as well as mental illness. i tried to be inclusive of depression and anxiety as well as other disorders like adhd and bipolar. (i’d like to be more inclusive of others, but i couldn’t find a lot of resources and wasn’t sure what would help aaaa)

please let me know if you have anything to add, and i hope this post can help you out in some way c:

while studying

create a routine, and do your best to stick to it. having a consistent schedule can be a struggle, especially when dealing with long days of class or difficulties with sleep. try something more open-ended and flexible if you can’t manage specific times. (studying for an hour in the morning and before bed vs studying at 8 am and 10 pm)

start with your favourite subject. there are a lot of suggestions on how to start a study session (and they usually conflict it seems), but i’ve found that this works best for me. your favourite subject may be easy or difficult, but by starting with it, you get in the groove of studying and won’t get burnt out as quickly, giving you more energy to do your other work.

don’t take on more than what you can handle. if you’re feeling motivated, great! get as much done as you can! but on the bad days, just do what you can. there are times where it seems nearly impossible to get anything done, but still try to make the most out of each day and do what you’re able to so you don’t fall far behind. do what you can, when you can. don’t overwork yourself so much.

during class

take notes. for me, the easiest way to lose track during a class is if i don’t write or doodle. even if the material doesn’t seem important, write it down! it may be useful later, and it’ll keep your mind from wandering during lecture. (that being said, don’t always write things exactly as the teacher says; putting it into your own words can make it easier to remember and understand)

record lecture audio. if you can’t copy everything down in time, or if for whatever reason you need to know something verbatim, then you’ll have something to listen to again later.

take pics of what the instructor writes on the board. similar to the above tip, you can refer back to the pictures you took. just don’t forget about them! write yourself a note or make an alarm on your phone to remind you that there’s more material to review. don’t be the kid who takes pictures during the whole lecture but never writes anything, that kid’s obnoxious and gets bad grades

stay focused. i fidget a lot with my hands and feet, especially during a long lecture or study session. i find that keeping my hand on my pen/pencil is the simplest way to keep my mind on track, but fidget toys may help you as well. most teachers and students are fine with it as long as it’s not too disruptive.

at home

keep track of medication. ngl i am suuuper forgetful when it comes to medication :’) if you’re forgetful too, leave yourself as many reminders as you can. set alarms, write notes, or have someone else keep you accountable if you’re living with a parent or roommate. having routine helps here as well, especially if you take meds multiple times a day.

communicate regularly with your doctor. if you’re living away from home, or just a busy student, it can be particularly difficult to make appointments. but you should still make an effort to email your doctor, therapist, etc. at least once a month, and more often if you’re currently changing or adjusting medications.

“catching up” on sleep is a myth. depriving yourself of sleep during the week and then sleeping in on the weekends won’t fix your sleep schedule, sadly. keep it consistent if you can. even if you’re staying up late and sleeping in, try to get at least 7-8 hours. whether it’s 12-8 am or 2-10 am, it’s a reasonable amount for getting through the day. sleeping too little can leave you tired and grumpy in the morning, but sleeping too much can also leave you groggy, sluggish, and unproductive for the rest of the day.

eat something healthy. okay, no one can eat healthy all the time, and i don’t expect you to. i certainly don’t expect myself to lol. but we can still find a healthy snack or meal to make a part of our lives. sometimes fruit is the best comfort food tbh. here are a few simple snacks that you could try, for studying or for whatever else. i personally enjoy anything with berries, especially yogurt parfait or oatmeal.

have a support system. it helps so much to have someone you can talk to when you’re not feeling well or in need of encouragement. it can be a friend, a parent, a sibling, your significant other, or even other members of the studyblr community! (if you don’t have anyone to talk to, please talk to me!! i am here for you my friendo)

other stuff

community college by @universi-tea - if you’re worried about moving into dorms or away from home (or are simply unable to), i strongly encourage you to try out community college. it’s made schooling much more enjoyable and accessible for me and i think everyone should give it a chance. plus it’s waaay cheaper.

also, most (if not all) U.S. schools have a disability services department; this applies to both physical and mental illnesses. talking to them for the first time can be nerve-wracking, but in the long run it’s completely worth it. teachers and staff want to help you! but you have to help yourself a lil bit too. accommodations may include leniency about attendance and deadlines, or they may let you take exams on earlier or later dates with fewer students present. the flexibility with deadlines has saved my ass more than once tbh

things to do when things don’t feel right by @affectionsuggestions - sometimes it’s okay to just do small things, and sometimes it’s okay to not do anything at all.

ways to start feeling again by @urbanthropologie - similar to above, but with a focus on mindfulness (helps with anxiety, dissociation, etc)

my mental illness tag - this has many other resources that are otherwise not listed in this post.

my printables tag! - printables are great for when you’re too tired or not sure how to write things out completely by hand. there are some planners and calendars as well as gratitude logs, habit trackers, etc.

i have tons of other tags listed here if you need anything more specific :>