Weekly Wins and Woes

A blog about how to handle the inner workings of a teen’s mind…after we figure out what’s going on!

Hello,

I’m Piltover Queen. I’m 17; homeschooling; interested in helping others with their mental health. I recently had the idea to set up my own blog but didn’t really know how to so I’ve chosen to take my baby steps here with all of you on this platform before launching an actual one.

I’ve created weekly wins and woes to discuss teenage mental health because I feel like despite all the research there is dedicated to it, no one really knows what goes on in a teen’s mind. And most especially not why. I’ve been through (and still going through) my own struggles with mental health and I hope this blog will let others know what I had a hard time discovering: you are not alone.

So, here’s how this will work: I will post this official blog every Wednesday, just to keep up the alliteration. My posts will be based on one topic either from the first person to respond or the response that seems most interesting. If a post doesn’t get any responses (which I hope is never the case, fingers crossed) I will just dive deeper into the topic of my previous post or find something else based on all the other posts on the mental health channel.

I’ll also make short daily posts, to respond to your comments throughout the mental health channel to the best of my ability or just share something interesting. You can look for my first two anonymous posts for an idea of what I discuss. They’re somewhere in the Creativity corner. LOL!

Now for the news…

One of my first responders said they found life repetitive and dull. They feel like they aren’t going anywhere and are caught up in this monotonous cycle.

I totally get it. I’ve spent this entire year homeschooling and self-studying. I never go out (socially) and my days basically consist of studies and extra courses. I have my IGCSEs at the end of the year (Oct/Nov) and by the way, I’m completely new to the syllabus I’m studying so I have to study two years’ worth of work in the next three months (more on that in another blog)! I get the feeling of stress and feeling like despite doing everything you are meant and trying to do; you’re not really going anywhere.

BTW, to the person who shared this case with me, I’m still new to understanding and analysing the cases described to me so if you don’t feel like I’ve stated your case clearly please let me know and I’ll try again.

That brings us to the question, what to do when you feel like life is squeezing you dry?

It’s really easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of daily expectations, especially when you’re a student. We have school, family, friends, extracurriculars – in some cases, part time jobs – and, let’s not forget, our hormones are still in their little amusement park trying out ALL the rides. It’s crazy how much we have on our shoulders! And sooner or later it all comes crumbling down on us.

So how can we pick ourselves up again?

It feels good to wallow in your room and throw a pity party but that really isn’t a long-term solution.




Don’t worry. I’m not going to share with you some cliché affirmations or inspirational speeches (but if that’s what you want let me know). I want to share with you ideas which you can implement into your daily life or not, either way is ok. If something works, hurray! If not, we can always try again. I just want to help you get on your feet again.

Productivity by Thomas Frank

I am not being sponsored and have no connection whatsoever to the guy. I just think he’s really cool.

Thomas Frank is someone I discovered earlier this month. Another productivity guru. But since I was out of options on how to properly arrange my life to study for my final exams, I checked him out (and you can too: https://collegeinfogeek.com/). He discussed a lot of productivity techniques, some I was already using; others I wasn’t, and he’s actually the one who made me realise that my idea of starting my own blog is actually a good one. But you’re not here for my own experiences, you’re here for your solutions!

I’m going to briefly discuss four ways to feel like you actually want to get out of bed in the morning:



On essentialism: doing more by doing less. The irony!

Basically, too many options overwhelms us but such is the price of freedom. When our brains see the mountain of tasks that lay before us they go, Nope, not today! And you’re back in bed before you know it - or your phone, or whatever you use to distract yourself. This is what creates that cycle and feeling of monotony. You feel dull because your days are dull. And because we are a naturally self-reflective species, you will look back on all that you did today and the disappoint will crush you. It will weigh even more when you realise that tomorrow’s to-do mountain just keeps growing.

So how to fix this?

Break the mountains down to boulders, then rocks, until you reach pebbles. Any one can go over a pebble right? Focus on your smallest tasks and perfect them until you can move on. Trying to juggle multiple things will put you in this comfortable cycle of mediocrity (assuming you see them through long enough), where you’re not failing but not succeeding either and that will just put you right back in the same uninspiring slump you’re probably in now. But don’t dwindle on every little thing either; don’t use that single homework assignment as an excuse for not carrying out your other obligations because that will still put you in a slump. Which brings me to my next point.

Time management

We all know this song, right: plan your day, do your tasks, wake up early, la la la. Very catchy! And true. But it doesn’t tell us how to actually do these thing, we’re just expected to. I’m someone who cannot move without a clear structure and plan for my day but even then I feel like everything before me is just too much (like how I haven’t really studied at all this week because all the work I have just seems too momentous).

So, here’s my advice, as someone who is also trying to effectively manage her own time:



‘But how to be accountable?’ you ask, ‘I can’t do it myself, can I?’ And the answer is no. Not at first anyway. Which is why you will have to…

Get a boss!

Total self-accountability is for the pros. Not us noobs, we still need someone to remind us to breath. And because it is such an essential task, our ‘boss’ must be someone reliable. Someone who cares about our success, is on (or has been on) a similar path and we trust. Work together. Create a to do list and place bets on who will finish theirs first. Get creative with your tasks.

Or if you’re like me and are completely devoid of a social life, you can just make a simple to-do list and treat yourself with chocolate at the end of the day, ONLY AFTER you’ve ticked off every single thing you’re supposed to do (remember: you only have to do four things!)

Waking up with motivation

Ending the day successfully doesn’t always mean that energy and will power will last until morning. I’ll usually plan out my entire day the night before then look at my schedule in the morning and wonder what the heck is wrong with me.

I hate having to change my daily routine because the energy required to think up new ways to get stuff done is just exhausting. However, experimenting with your daily schedule is the best way to figure out what works for you. Mostly because new things tend to be exciting so we can start the day looking forward to it.

Try a morning routine which builds up your productivity momentum. Do something fun and productive after you wake up: go for a walk, do the dishes (yes, dishes are fun!), read a book. Do anything that will get you into work mode and preferably doesn’t involve a gadget. If it’s something you love doing, even better!



I understand this was a really long read. My bad! I want to get into the habit of posting every Wednesday. I researched and typed all of this today, so if it feels a little rushed or disorganised, again, my bad. Next week’s will be better I promise. Now please, tell me what you think about all of this and what you would like for me to discuss next. I’ll do all the hard research for you and present them in a more condensed and humorous manner.

Here are all the sources I used:





If you have any ideas on how I could improve in my writing or presentation please let me know. Thanks for reading!

Bye-bye now!


P.S I'd originally planned for this to be an article but the moderation process is taking too long for me. So I'll just post directly onto the threads.

Piltover Queen, this is great! It's so easy to feel alone with so much going on especially this time of year with exam pressure. I am very interested in psychology, particularly dream psychology. My friend and I are currently studying the effects lucid dreaming can have on long term learning.

Really? That is so cool! I'm interested in lucid dreaming too. If you want I could discuss it in another post!

Awesome! That sounds good. I'll set one up now.

Just posted, have a look on the mental health section

We're already in the mental health section. Where did you post your question?

On a separate thread in the mental health section. Just a thread to discuss lucid dreaming. It's under review now for some reason.