Feeling down...falling behind in class because of unstable mental state

School and Work
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been debating making a whole thread or posting in say anything…

realized i’m going to fail (or barely pass) the one class im taking: statistics.

i have a test on wednesday which i haven’t studied for and have fallen very behind in the past several weeks when avolition became much worse. thats also when i started compulsively looking at the forum way too much. i cannot make up lost ground between now and wednesday, i might not even take the test because i couldn’t handle the pressure

withdrawing from abilify has made me very unstable in the past 3 weeks, i have had serious mood swings and an inconsistent sleep schedule. i have even had suicidal thoughts during my random mood swings. this and avolition made it impossible to study or do the homework.

i think if my gpa falls below a 2.0 i will be placed on academic probation or something like that. might have to work really hard to get it back up so im not suspended. its just one class in the grand scheme of things, so i don’t know how much it will affect my gpa.

on the mental health side of things, if i fail at this i might be devastated. i know its an overreaction, but sometimes i am not rational with these things. i realize my self esteem is unstable

will talk to my older sister over the phone in a couple minutes, hopefully she can advise me on what to do…

there’s always the option of trying to cram 3 weeks of work into 3 days, of course even trying might end with me feeling even worse, especially if i cant grasp anything…so im wondering if i should even try at all

any and all advice is welcome

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Go back on a therapeutic dose of an antipsychotic ?

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I understand feeling like the world is collapsing out from under you due to failing or falling behind in school (finally). I think you need to be on an AP again soon. It’s clear you’re doing poorly without it. :frowning: If you need to talk any time, I’m here, buddy.

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i think i’m unstable because of withdrawal effects.

i was possibly more unstable on a higher dose.

i was always getting nothing done, its not a new thing.

in some ways i’m more stable now, at least that’s my personal observation

there may be more stability after i get over the hump of withdrawal, that’s what i would like to believe

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Health should be No.1 among all things. Consider giving youself 3-5 years to find the best meds to you as a special individual. During this 3-5 years you just learn to cope with the side effects of antipsychotics and to improve you cognitive ability. Once you are happy to take meds and are stable long enough, then you can restart your degree study.

BTW I have spent 5 years figuring out the best meds for me and exploring the way to handle the side effects. I failed over and over when trying out the supplements to improve my cognitive ability. Now I feel ready to do some academic work.

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Not to be flippant or anything. In my experience as someone who has gotten a 0.0 gpa my first semester of college…

Aim to PASS, nobody cares what your grade is so long as you pass. It’ll only matter to employers if you get all A’s and a 4.0gpa, otherwise carry on.

Statistics is challenging to many people. Have you asked for extra help from your professor or learning resource center. A tutor?

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i just can’t control my mood swings right now…

i think bipolar illness may be at play

right now all i want to do is cry

i don’t believe the atypical antipsychotics produce good enough improvements in cognition and negative symptoms in most ppl

all they do is suppress psychosis to some degree

and many people continue to struggle to do anything, academics included, many years after getting on them

and i have tried many of them, seroquel was the best, though i was still not at 100%

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wait a second…schizophrenics are creative,

what the heck are studying statistics for?

never in a million years, I know I would fail that class.

anyway, just wondering if you can get with a teaching assistant
for the class, and explain that you’ve fallen behind.

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9

IMO, Just do what you can in these 3 days. Its ok if you dont do as well as u would have liked- dont put too much pressure on yourself I agree that will just be self-destructive. Its not the end of the world if you dont get the result u wanted for this exam.

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even passing may be tough now, having fallen behind already

the tests aren’t cumulative, but the things we’re learning build upon each other

i don’t think i can finish the last half of the semester strong

i have always been in decline post diagnosis

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Aw, I feel you, depression sucks and the crying all the time, don’t get me started…

Simple things tend to help me. Like: opening the curtains in the morning to let the sun in; walking; eating healthy; doing something you enjoy. Time out of the day to do these little things may ease your worries and let you get some studying in.

Take a deep breathe.

3 days… its still not to late for a tutor.

On a side note, How is statistics class in this day and age? Is it computer-based?

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i’m not majoring in stats, im terrible at math, its an introductory statistics class
which is required for the psychology ba

then we go on to “research methods”

its in a lecture and lab format, though they might be changing the lab to a discussion or something like that

we listen to the lecture and take notes, once a week we meet in a smaller group guided by a TA who gives us quizzes and answers questions about hw

quizzes and hw are not graded, only tests

textbook is optional, as the professor decides what will be on the tests and what is important

its pretty easy stuff, especially if you have ever taken a statistics class before, though right now i can’t make sense of any of it

i was going to take an online statistics course at community college summer of 2015, though i dropped it because i felt bad.

a week later i had my psychotic break, and here i am

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I took intro to stats and then a more advanced stats for my BA in sociology way back when I graduated in 2003. Both were computer and lecture based. No textbooks.

Personally, I loved it. Forgotten it all now though.

I did my senior thesis on crime in my city and its relationship with recidivism after community service. I even went so far as to collect all the data myself from the DA’s office where I interned. Then I gave a 1/2 hour lecture to my class at the end of the project. It was just supposed to be 10 minutes but I had so much to tell.

Looking back, I was probably manic at the time. I worked 2 jobs, internship and full-time student. plus partying all night.

I still say keep hope, you can pass!!!

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14

Unless you are facing Gandalf. :slight_smile:

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its 5pm, i havent studied at all, may open the notes at 6, try and study through to midnight, and assess how far behind i am and develop a practical strategy

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Explain that due to health reasons you are unable to tKe the test

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In the UK where I live, if you didnt pass and are very unwell, they allow you to retake at a later date with a note from the doctor. I don’t know about where you live Gorrister (I’m not saying u will not pass but just in case).

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I am in contact with the disability office for my campus, they can postpone exams for me…I have to send an email soon though. It’s time for me to get motivated and do that if I will. Now is the time.

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Not only is there the negative n cognitive symptoms but u have withdrawal so it’s a good case u are making

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Thank you everyone for your advice, I’ve decided to write an email to the disability office to try and postpone the exam, hopefully I can take it at a later date and earn a better score.

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