oliviathetriceratops

[oliviathetriceratops]

how to study with a mental illness!!!! aka a guide to simultaneously caring for yourself and your academics

(disclaimer: this is from purely personal experience and is not a substitute for seeking professional help. these are just personal tips as i was formally diagnosed with depression and anxiety in the third year of college, but had been showing symptoms even in high school. different methods help for different people, but i really hope some of these things can help a struggling student out, because one of the reasons i went on studyblr in the first place was that i felt really lost and anxious.)

1. done is better than none. sometimes an assignment you have to turn in would be objectively easy to complete, but it takes longer to do so because you’re afraid that the final product won’t be as good as you want it to be, or as good as a professor expects it to be. it’s hard to remove those expectations, but it is a little easier when you remember that getting some points (no matter how many they are) are better than getting a deduction for late submissions or not turning in the project at all. many people – including myself – suffer from perfectionism in university, but it is overall more important to complete something to the best of your own ability, and learn from the feedback on the project later on. more importantly, often, you’re doing better than you think you’re doing, so surprise yourself. you can do it. just start.  2.  keep careful track of your deadlines.  much of my undergrad anxiety came from the fact that i knew something was due, but couldn’t keep track of it, or didn’t want to confront it. it’s better to confront it because you have more time to do it slowly and thoroughly. as soon as you hear about an impending exam or paper deadline, keep track of it. personally, i use google calendar. from there, you can make smaller plans and break down your goals to make it more doable! 3. don’t be afraid to ask for help.  there used to be a huge stigma against mental illness, but thankfully, many educational institutions are much kinder and more considerate about it. if you really can’t meet a deadline or come to class, let your professor know. most professors are kind, reasonable people who genuinely care about you and your well-being. even one of my scariest professors granted extensions to a girl who was genuinely struggling with serious depression, and the college of law i’m in takes mental health very seriously to the point that they instruct faculty how to deal with such cases.  if you’re not able to talk to a professor, try to ask help from a classmate or a friend who can share notes or fill you in on how they accomplished a certain assignment. many people will be happy to help. you are not a burden, love. 4. be kinder to yourself.  mental illness is like any illness. it often keeps us from doing as well as we’d like to be because it’s a genuine and serious health problem. sometimes it helps to keep this in mind when we flub a report in class (as i did several tens of times in undergrad), get a bad score, say something ridiculous during recitation, or mess up a paper. it’s okay to do your best while you heal. you know you’re trying your best, and slow growth is still growth. 5. on that note, care for your other needs.  one of my happiest and most fulfilled semesters (even though it was my busiest) was when i had time to see a psychiatrist, run, pack lunches and fruit to school to eat healthy, and have a reasonable-ish sleep schedule. this was during my thesis semester. while i had to take an incomplete, and finish my thesis the next sem, because i was attending to my own needs, i felt like a living, breathing, learning, happy person. and i finished my thesis the next semester. it’s better to look after your own physical health and needs before your academics. 6. sometimes, it’s better to do nothing and rest. you deserve it.  part of the reason i’d been doing horribly in law school was that i didn’t sleep and it was making me mildly unbalanced and incredibly suicidal; not to mention the fact that i wasn’t really retaining any information or performing well. rest days are just as important as days when you study because rest IS productivity.  7. take your meds. see your psych or therapist if you have one. avail yourself of mental health services on campus if there are any. these genuinely saved my life at a time that i thought i was beyond saving. please go seek help if you can.  BONUS: MY STUDY SETUP ON A TERRIBLE MENTAL HEALTH DAY (like today) - i try to clear the space and clean up as much as possible. it makes me feel like i have things under control, and have my work things where i can see them. - i eat something healthy, like fruit, and get a lot of water. i keep a water jug on my desk because it clears my thoughts and helps me replenish the fluids lost from crying (1/2jk). it also really keeps up my strength for the study process. - i turn on a calming playlist, like a jazz or lofi or ghibli playlist. in another window, i turn on a rain sound video on a softer volume, and it helps center me. - it helps when you have a soft or calming scent to calm you down. i use a lavender room spray, and it makes me feel cozy and productive, but in undergrad, i used this tea-tree lavender mix and it smelled like sunny afternoons and guitar coffeshop playlists. it really is nice. - there are breathing exercises and gifs all over the internet. they help calm you down when things seem Too Much.  i really hope this helps, guys. don’t hesitate to message me if you’ve been having a hard time with school or life or anything. please, please care for yourselves. you can do it.  – sam

[oliviathetriceratops]

Touch. 

[oliviathetriceratops]

you ask

if we can still be friends

i explain how a honeybee

does not dream kissing

the mouth of a flower

and then settle for its leaves

- Rupi Kaur, The Sun and Her Flowers

[oliviathetriceratops]

just because your idea of a good time is curling up with a book and hers is doing tequila shots does not make you a better person than her

[oliviathetriceratops]

heres a TOTALLY BLANK image!! there is DEFINITELY NO REASON for u to click it!!!!!!!!! NOT AT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!

[oliviathetriceratops]

Happy pride 🌈❤️💛💚💙💜

[oliviathetriceratops]

two ships passing in the night // t.e.

[oliviathetriceratops]

it is okay to gasp at the sunset every single evening like it is the first sunset you have ever seen. it is okay to take photos of everything you find pretty. it is okay to laugh about something that happened a week ago (it is okay to laugh entirely too much). it is okay to say that the sunlight looks like honey, that the world looks like a dream today. it is okay to memorize poems by heart and recite them to people who make your heart feel warm. it is okay to take this life and weave it golden. don’t let anyone tell you that you are silly or dramatic or stupid. you are beautiful. you have beautiful eyes through which everything sparkles and nothing goes unnoticed and you are so loved for that.

[oliviathetriceratops]

Oil paintings by Alyssa Monks.

[oliviathetriceratops]

Mr Pumpkin

[oliviathetriceratops]

not to get political but, titties

[oliviathetriceratops]

oof this is lovely x

t o d a y

[oliviathetriceratops]

What about the ROUSes?

[oliviathetriceratops]

starting sixth form

with the odd, almost forgotten chill and the rain of september has come a drought for my creativity. i have ideas, but every time it comes to putting pen to paper i can’t do it. the words don’t flow and i don’t feel, at the end of it all, that i have written anything worth anything; some of it doesn’t deserve to see the light of day, let alone the backlighting of your laptop.

nevertheless, here i am. writing once more. my ideas still only work out in my head, so maybe a quick life update?

the beginning of sixth form has heralded an exhaustion i knew not of, and let me tell you: i. am. so. tired.

going into this, i expected hard work, but what i didn’t expect was the fact that the first week would be almost as tiring as taking my gcse exams nine weeks ago. having finally settled on my options for ib, i embarked on what i hoped would be a fun, fulfilling next year of school. i have given up on this dream after three days and have now accepted my fate of being a total weeping mess for the rest of my life. when i eventually drop out of the education system forever (i predict within the month) and go to live in a cave with many books on mythology, do not try to find me, i’m not coming back.

... ok ok, i may be exaggerating a little bit. sixth form does have its benefits. for one, i now have nine study periods a fortnight instead of three, and for another i no longer have to endure organic chemistry. i feel freer than i have in a while, and i can just tell that all my subjects are going to be so stimulating and ultimately i shall to come out of this a better, more developed person.

but for now, i am still a unpunctual, confused, and crying mess of a girl. fingers crossed for the future, yeah?

[oliviathetriceratops]

hi Summer, we haven’t properly met yet, but I’m from england

Summer seems lovely. She’s the kind of girl who you never expected to meet, but she walks into a room and blows you away. From that moment, you know that everything will be dull if she’s not there by your side, and you’d do anything for her attention. Never mind the sunstroke if you can see her smile at you.    

While two of her sisters, Spring and Autumn, are ever so caring, Summer is like Winter: able to flit from cheerful and excited to harsh and angry in a single second. Upset her and her blazing eyes will make your skin blister and peel for what seems like an age.

But Summer is spontaneous, always smiling as she sleeps on a pool float in the middle of the sparkling water. She is always up for a laugh; while you lie spread on the grass, sweating and proclaiming ‘It’s too hot! I can’t go on!’, Summer will carry on, day-drinking, and turning cartwheels until late at night.

WOW IS IT HOT.

I know, I know, I know, the 30 degree heat every single day is because of global warming, and has the very sad side effect of the north pole melting (it’s going to be very upsetting come christmas when santa is homeless), but right now, I do not care. I’ve never been one for hot weather, I melt like an ice cream at anything over 15, but right now I am so in the mood to live on magnums and get my tan on.

Is this what it’s like in other countries? Ones where you get more than just 3 days of sunshine a year? Because, no offense England, I could get used to this.

[oliviathetriceratops]

in some capacity, you are loved. someone loves the comment you made on their dress, someone loves the way you smile, or the way you laugh, or the way you say a certain word. when your name is said, it is never met without some sort of love

[oliviathetriceratops]

this album is just amazing 💘

panic! at the disco - say amen (saturday night)