#study-aquarius
Just a disclaimer before I start: I am in no way shape or form speaking for every mentally ill person out there! Everyone’s experience is different so what worked/works for me may not be as effective for you! Personally, I was diagnosed with depression and generalized anxiety disorder about four years ago when I was 13, so I’ve kind of worked my way around my mental illnesses throughout high school. Anyway let’s start!
I answered an ask on general motivation tips that you can find here
Procrastinating? Ask yourself why. We all struggle with procrastination, I literally do not know a single person who doesn’t. But oftentimes when we reallyprocrastinate (and by that I mean avoid doing important tasks for extended periods of time) there’s an underlying reason as to why. For me, it’s tied to anxiety. When tasks seem super overwhelming or too difficult, I get into this headspace of like ‘oh maybe if I ignore it it’ll go away’ yeah it WONT. The secret to beating this is accomplishing your tasks little by little, so it seems a lot less overwhelming. If you work on that paper that’s been freaking you out for like 20 minutes at a time, you’ll get there eventually. (and if anyone is wondering, I once procrastinated so hard for a bio lab that was due in october, and only submitted it in march. Don’t ask me how I didn’t get my ass kicked because I don’t know either).
Laziness vs Depression. Okay. This might get a little controversial. On the studyblr/studygram community people always talk about motivation and mental illness as though depressed people aren’t lazy at all and their habits are just a product of their mental illness. While this is true most of the time (we all know that lack of motivation is a symptom of depression), it’s important to know when you’re having a bad mental health day and when you’re being lazy. It happens to everyone, being a little lazy once in a while isn’t a bad thing, but you yourself should know where your lack of motivation is coming from. For me, I know I’m having an off day if I’m asleep all day and not skipping meals; conversely, I know I’m being lazy if I’m putting off my work to watch bon appetit on youtube for three hours. Knowing yourself and your illness is so so so important; we might not necessarily be able to 'overcome’ our mental illnesses, but knowing how to work with it can make your life so much easier.
Ask for help. I was lucky enough to go to a school where my teachers were very understanding of mental health and would work with us if we needed extra guidance/time/whatever, but not everyone has this luxury. If you feel yourself spiraling, talk to someone, anyone.Whether it be your best friend, your guidance counselor, your dog, literally anyone. It’s so important to voice your feelings out so you can get help. If you feel like you don’t have any in person outlets, there is an entire community here on tumblr that’ll lend an ear and welcome you with open arms. You are not a burden. You matter. We all need this reminder sometimes.
