Living alone with mental health problems

Former Member

Hi, 
So I'm 19 and in my second year at uni. Due to my uni being idiots last term, I am no longer allowed to live in uni accommodation (long story short, I had 5 a&e admissions and they decided I was unsafe so they couldn't be responsible so they made me move out). The one good thing about this is that it means I can go back to uni this term because I am now in my own flat. I go back on Saturday and whilst I am very excited because home is not a good environment, I am also very scared for a number of reasons. 
Firstly, it will be the first time I have lived alone and I don't have much confidence in my ability to run a flat and sort bills etc. It's not a major concern because I am sure I will just muddle through but I don't want to mess up. 
What's more important is the isolation I fear will come from living alone. I spoke to the welfare officer at college (I go to a collegiate uni so slightly different systems to others) today and we have realised that I have a daily check in with someone: her, my gp, my therapist, my chaplain and my study mentor. So I am confident I will be able to see people (albeit virtually for several of them). But I am concerned about the amount of time I am likely to spend on my own in my own head, which probably isn't good as I have very poor mental health (CPTSD, anorexia, depression with psychosis, anxiety etc). My biggest fear is looking after my own medication. I get weekly prescriptions to try and manage the risk of overdose so I can't have too much at once, but in the past few months at home looking after my own meds I have attempted suicide. I can't seem to think of a practical solution because I highly doubt that my GP can prescribe more frequently than weekly and I don't want to bother her but I am quite anxious. I am suicidal but I don't want to die and I am still trying to figure out how to keep fighting. So any advice would be great- or just to hear from others who might live alone. 
Thanks,
AJ xx

Former Member

Hm this is a tricky one @_AJ_ I think living alone for the first time is always a little scary so you're definitely not alone in feeling like this. As for your specific problems it seems like you have a fairly good handle on things, remember that if you're ever struggling with regular flat management you can always ask other people for help since these are things almost everyone has to deal with.

It also seems like you have a good plan for dealing with any loneliness, having a good support network and checking in on them regularly is a great idea and hopefully it'll help you feel better especially with how isolated we all are at the moment. Another good coping mechanism is to have a lot of distractions around you, anytime you start feeling yourself get tied up in your own thoughts you just try your best to take your mind off it in any way that works best for you.

Unfortunately I don't really have any concrete advice for your medication, it already seems like you're doing all the right things but it's still a worry for you. I think it might be helpful if you mentioned these feelings to your GP or your therapist even if they can't change your medication they still might be able to recommend some solutions going forward. I know you mentioned you feel anxious about talking to your GP about these things so feel free to ignore me but it's always an option! I hope this all helps.