School, tests

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I’ve just arrived in my new school, and I’m about to do my final exams next year. I just feel my grades aren’t keeping up and I’m unable to handle the stress that school work puts on me. I start crying in the night when I look at school work because I don’t know what to do. I also feel insecure in terms of grades because I’m scared I’ll fail my french classes. Our french class is chaotic and I feel I don’t learn anything there. It’s just pointless for me to go to school now. I kinda hate school, I used to love it because lessons were fun and my classmates were nice. Now it’s just as if I’m experiencing endless torture whenever I step in. I’ve been sick for a week because of flu, and when I went back I found that I had multiple assessments to catch up on and its just taking a toll on me😭 Any suggestions on what I should do?

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Hi there,
I tried teaching myself french when i was 14 but i found that the written is longer than the spoken by a lot sometimes.
My first foriegn language that i taught myself was Greek.
and i still can count to 20 and slightly remember the symbols like sigma.

Anyways, Im still in school at the moment too actually and its a dread sometimes. Some people might say to just focus on your own growth at your own pace and many other opinion but i will let you in on a bit of a nugget of wisdom -

Be it even if we fail in something in life, it is not the end of the world.
What is most important is that we pick ourselves up from that and carry on living. There was a wise word from Kenshin Himura ( Samurai X ) in which he said " You can die anytime but it takes courage to live " or something like that.

Right now, my advice is to make the most of what you can do, what is within your control. Give it your all, wholeheartedly but dont be too hard on yourself if the outcome is not what you desired.

One step at a time, one task at a time. Learn to manage your time - Do a time table if you have to. With a few hours of spare time that you do have, spend it on cathcing up 1 of the lessons you missed.

I missed like 2 weeks of Java Script and i was panicking as well but i ended up passing and manage to catch up by implementing time to study and also unwind and just like 1-2 hours reading up on what i missed as an add on to the days lesson.

Hope this Helps.
And remember, Failure is not the end.

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Hi user1347

Thank you for the courage to come forward with what you are going through. I’m sorry to hear you’re feeling overwhelmed and stressed about school. Please do not be too discouraged though. Many of us have faced similar issues at school before and overcame them by using some of the following suggestions. I believe these might help you, too.

  1. Talk to someone: Share your feelings with a trusted teacher, school counsellor, or parent. They can offer support, guidance, and help you develop a plan to manage your workload. Recognise that this is a transition period for you, moving to a new school so getting support would be helpful.

  2. Break tasks into smaller steps: Divide study sessions and assignments into manageable chunks, making them less daunting.

  3. Seek help for French class: Consider tutoring or extra support outside of regular class time. What does learning French mean for you? Keep going with this in mind.

  4. Prioritize self-care: Make time for activities that bring you joy and help you relax, like exercise, reading, or hobbies.

  5. Focus on progress, not perfection: Set realistic goals and celebrate small achievements.

  6. Take breaks and practice self-compassion: Allow yourself time to rest and recharge, and be kind to yourself when feeling overwhelmed.

  7. Explore stress management techniques: Look into mindfulness, deep breathing, or meditation to help cope with stress.

Remember, you’re not alone, and many students face similar challenges. Take small steps towards goals. You can do this! :heart:

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Hello @user1347 :wave:t2:! Thank you for sharing how you’re feeling!

I’m sorry to hear you’re feeling this way, but please know that it’s alright to be overwhelmed, and you’re not alone (I feel the same way too). School, especially when it feels like everything is piling up, can be quite stressful, and the strain of examinations may make it even worse.

Some advice or tips I would give you (as someone who occasionally faces this problem)

  1. Set a to-do list for the day and week. I normally plan for the week so that I can have an overview of what’s pending. In addition to that, a to-do list for the day so I am aware of what needs to be done. Sometimes I might be slower than I expected and not finish my to-do list but just let you know it’s fine and okay.
  2. In addition to the to-do list, perhaps a calendar on your due dates for school, etc. The calendar helps me navigate through my day-to-day activities.
  3. Rest when you need. Previously I would feel guilty for not studying but I came to the realisation that I need breaks. Studying when I’m tired doesn’t help. Although the work is done, my brain is tired and doesn’t absorb or understand the information thus it defeats the purpose of learning. Therefore, I give myself breaks or naps in between.

I understand it can be overwhelming and sometimes our emotions take over us but it’s fine to be feeling this as school is honestly not easy but just try your best !! :smile:

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Hey @user1347 Final exams, new school, assignments…you are going through a lot, it must be quite difficult to adapt :smiling_face_with_tear:
New environments are usually hard for us to get used to, and you have all the other things on top of that. I feel the same as well when entering a new class or new place, gosh that feeling of awkward and stress is not something I want to go back too. But I hope to tell you that it gets better.
Some tips on how I personally overcome these challenges would be:

  1. Calendar and To-do lists. I use Google calendar as the basis for all my events so I keep track on stuff and it connects to emails - perfect to schedule any meetings virtually as well. And I also use a simple to do list on my laptop (using the sticky notes), but feel free to write them down in a book, make sure it’s something you usually would refer to. It can get overwhelming when we think about all the assignments and honestly I was so anxious my thoughts went wild. But after listing them and planning them out across the week or month, I felt better because I had the control of how I plan to do things. Hope it helps ease your anxiety too!
  2. Try to create a support circle for yourself. I know this is a hard one (a very hard on indeed which I took months to create), but can start by taking little steps by asking classmates on homework and getting to know them. By having a group of people you can seek support to, it will help you in the long run (and for your mental health too!). I can see that you mentioned you love your classmates previously, so I would assume you treasure this type of support as well. I know it’s hard (repeating this because it’s so true especially in a new environment), but when you adjust yourself better, try taking those steps little by little.
  3. Stress management. I hear that you start crying at night due to the feelings of helplessness, and that’s completely normal! I would say crying is a way I let my feelings out, once in awhile I would actually cry it out to feel better, like putting out all my stress ugh. Some may see it as a weakness, but I see it as my coping mechanism. So I hope you could find a good stress management technique maybe exercising (to get those happy hormones), playing a game, or taking breaks to pace yourself etc

All in all, what you are going through is tough definitely and I’m sorry you have to go through that. Sometimes, I see it as a character development arc that is necessary. Just wanted to let you know a quote I hold dear to myself is that ever “everything will pass eventually”. So what you are feeling now is tough, but it will pass on eventually. I hope everything turns out well and feel free to have a chat! Always open to talk about this :sparkling_heart: