Worried about anxiety getting worse

Former Member

I’ve just started back at uni for my third year after having a year out on placement. My second year at uni wasn’t great for me mentally and I really struggled but when I went on placement my anxiety got better and I felt okay. Now I’m back at uni I can feel it getting worse again. I’m so scared it’ll go back to how it was in second year. I know my uni has a well-being centre and all that but I don’t want to talk to them. I just don’t really know what to do, I really don’t want it to get bad again.

Former Member

Hiya @Dandelion
I'm sorry to hear that you feel your anxiety is getting worse again. This must be hard to cope with especially because you have struggled in the past and fear that you will have a bad experience again. But I want to reassure you that you are doing everything right to make the situation better than before. You have already recognised that your anxiety is increasing and admitting this and sharing this with us is such a brave and positive first step to dealing effectively with your anxiety. It's great that you have said that you don't want your anxiety to get bad again because it shows you are willing to work on your anxiety.
I think the best thing to do is look back at your second year and identify what is was about university that made you anxious. Was it the workload, deadlines, socialising or something else? Then think about what you enjoyed about your placement year. Once you have identified was it is about university that makes you anxious, you can start to work on these areas. For example if the workload makes you anxious, put in place steps such as using a to-do list app. Then when thinking about what you enjoyed in your placement year hopefully you can bring some of the things you enjoyed into this year.
You say that you don't want to talk to your university's wellbeing centre and I wonder why this is? Personally, I used my university's wellbeing service and they gave me a space to talk about things that were worry me and helped to teach me ways to cope with anxiety such as breathing exercises and strategies to deal with things like perfectionism. I know all university's are different but the wellbeing service is there to help you and I would really recommend reaching out to someone. But I fully understand if you do not want to but instead I'm wondering if you could reach out to any family or friends, just so you are not having to deal with the anxiety all on your own? And of course we are always here for you too.
Some other things I used to use for anxiety were meditation apps or Youtube videos of calming sounds like rain to help soothe me.
I hope some of this helpful, sending you lots of hugs Just because second year was tough doesn't mean that this year will be the same.

Former Member

Hi @Dandelion , bless you, it sounds as if things are really worrying you at the moment- I definitely have been there! Although I completely agree with @Kat that it is important that you seek some help with how you're feeling, I can see why you might not want to contact your uni's wellbeing services, my experience with them wasn't the best at my uni either.
Uni is such a strange experience, not to mention during COVID times, so it understandable that you feel apprehensive about starting your third year after having a tough time in your second year. I'm wondering what kind of support you have around you at the moment, are you living with friends? It is so important that you continue to talk about your feelings, and we will be here to listen

AislingDM

As has already been so perfectly put, @Dandelion , it is beyond reasonable to feel apprehension at the prospect of returning, especially after such a more positive time during your placement. I completely echo what has already been said in terms of the ideal situation being accessing continued support through the uni, whilst also acknowledging that this is not always possible when some universities do not have adequate services. This must not help with your anxiety about returning I just thought I'd ask, what do you think made the placement year feel less anxiety-inducing for you? Maybe there is some small thing about that year that you could emulate this year, to try to make this easier? xxx