The Student Room Group
Reply 1
17 and at university? How's that one work then?
Reply 2
Hi,

I am sorry to hear you are not feeling yourself right now! Most university have support groups, you could go and see one of them, and i am sure they will be able to help you loads.

Or even just being around your friends, can cheer you up.

Do you live in the UK, its weird that your 17 and already at uni.

What is it that is making you feel this way, do you know, usually the best thing to do, is work out what is causing the problem eg - home sick, uni studies etc, and then try to sort it out.

I hope you feel better soon, and i hope everything works out for you.

Hope that helps
PM if you want to talk
Reply 3
There's nothing anyone can help me with. My problems are too deep-rooted. (And yes, Nix!, I'm 17 and I'm at university! It works, just because.).

Stats show that 3 out of 5 people in this particular town, or this part of the country, are depressed, because they lack fun in their life. I am one of them.

I have friends, not like I dont have friends or anything, but the problem is that they are really not enthusiastic about going out/hanging out/etc. Or most of them are busy, they have a part-time job or something. Or they just dont want me to hang out with them. :dontknow:

I live in a place where there is very little fun places to go (clubs and pubs are out of bounds because I'm 17. And dont recommend me fake ID, I already have one, and they actually SCAN Id's here to make sure they're not spooked).

The transport system is terrible, so its not like I can take a bus go out on my own. The buses are infrequent, and I cant bear to stand in the cold for an hour waiting for a bus to come. Cabs are expensive. I dont have a driving license, nor a car.

You might recommend me to get a job. But I cant get a part time job because I dont have a work visa. And I have to be in this country for one year just to apply for a work visa (let alone processing the visa, then finding a job).

You might recommend me join clubs, etc in University. Sure. If I lived close to University, why not? But I dont. The timings are placed weirdly. Like they end at 9 PM. And most buses dont run at that time (or at least the ones I need to get home).

The only thing I think of doing is sitting at home, playing guitar, coming on TSR, playing Doom 3, drinking alcohol and smoking weed. And thats all I do. No kidding. I live 10,000 miles away from my parents. Its doing me no good.

I've started self-harming again. Today I cut myself, and dabbed my name in big letters on a paper using my blood, and stuck it on the wall.

Please try to understand my problem. Flaming me or telling me to "get my ass out" will not help.:frown:
Reply 4
PS: I dont live in UK

PPS: I dont have problems with uni work or anything at all. The uni is great. I just wanna be in a place where there is more of an active life. More fun. *sigh*
Reply 5
You've got to learn to help yourself.

Realise this: depression is pretty much part and parcel of being 17. Sitting around and dwelling on things isn't going to fix it.

Happiness is a state of mind, not an activity. You need to change your outlook from 'what I could be doing/have' to 'what you are doing/have'. Focus on the good things rather than the bad.

Hormones are a bitch, but they'll go eventually, so hang in there and stop ******* self-harming! It's nothing to be proud of.
Reply 6
Anonymous
PS: I dont live in UK

PPS: I dont have problems with uni work or anything at all. The uni is great. I just wanna be in a place where there is more of an active life. More fun. *sigh*


Then change university.

Help yourself. Don't expect people to do things for you.
in scotland u can get to uni at 16 - if u r young for ur school year and then leave after your highers in 5th year
Reply 8
Just an idea - why don't you take a year out and go back to university when you're a little older?
Reply 9
Maybe you have ASD, or Attention Seeking Disorder.

Perhaps not, in which case you should be writing to a doctor not a forum.
Of course you are depressed..you are 17, sitting in your room alone all the time, smoking pot and playing video games. It's enough to make anyone depressed.

First thing you need to do is go and consult a doctor and get referred to a counsellor. It sounds like you could use someone to talk to about this, so take advantage of therapy sessions. At the very least they will get you out of the house for a bit and interacting with someone.

Then try to start getting some exercise. Exercise releases endorphins, which are your body's natural high. It will get you a bit more fit and healthy, distract you from your worries and make you feel a lot better. It will also help with insomnia, which is a common symptom of depression. Getting some fresh air and a tiny bit of sun can help get you feeling a tiny bit better. Start off small, just going for a walk every day and then try to increase it to something like going for a swim, or a jog or just increasing the length of your walks.

Also, cut out the weed. It is just going to make you lazy and zonked out all the time. It's hard to do anything if you're always stoned.

You're not alone in suffering depression and you aren't going to feel this way forever, but you have to start doing things to help yourself. Part of growing up is learning how to look after yourself and you will feel a lot better if you are doing something to help yourself out. Try to participate in life as much as you can, even if it doesn't feel good. Sometimes you have to do what's right for yourself and wait for the good feelings to come later.

Oh and as for all the ideas which you quickly knocked before they were even suggested. Reconsider those. I bet if you put more effort into it you could go out once a week with some people, or you could find another way to occupy your time. Just because you don't want to go and do these things and they aren't as easy as sitting around, doesn't mean they aren't possible.
The only thing I think of doing is sitting at home, playing guitar, coming on TSR, playing Doom 3, drinking alcohol and smoking weed. And thats all I do.


well you know, alcohol is a depressant, has no one ever told you that? and weed is likely to make you feel worse in the long run
Reply 12
Out of interest, where are you? :confused:
It sounds like you're too young to handle uni life. Even though you say it's not the uni or work that is bothering you...where are you? It's very rare for a 17yr old to go to university in England, maybe a few of the student nurses are 17 when they start the course, but almost 18...ermm, that's why you have to be 18 to attend most universities, because you have to fend for yourself etc...i think you should take a year out then go back when you're a bit older. As for the attitude about nobody can help you, then obviously you will be depressed if that is your attitude towards it. Obviously something is making you depressed, maybe not an obvious reason, but it'll be there....people don't just get depressed for no reason. Go seek some help or talk to family members and for your own sake, try to have a little bit more of an open mind?
Reply 14
i'm in North America. This is my first time to North America. I've lived in Asia all my life. (I'm east Indian)
Reply 15
I've been here for one whole semester and a half, but funny I have to start feeling depressed now. At first I kept telling myself that I am 'busy' with work thus I have no time to go out etc.

Then I started to realise that all of it was just an excuse, and that it was actually out of my hands.:dontknow:


Nix!
Then change university.



Help yourself. Don't expect people to do things for you.
This is exactly what I dont want. :frown: This is why I hate TSR. People are absolutely terrible at giving advice. I dont want you to do anything for me. You dont even have to provide advice. I just need a place I can blurt out my problems to. And it's people like you that make it worse. *sigh*

Going back to the changing University part, its not in my hands. I cant afford any other University. Being an international student, I already pay (or rather, my parents pay) x4 times what local students pay. You wanna see my bill? The International Differential is $4,866 per semester. And this was supposedly the "best deal" for me. But now I see its not too good. (Not counting the fact that my parents are pulling away after my first year).
Reply 16
Plus, I cant go back to my own country for university because I got rejected by all universities there. Thats why I went outside for studies in the first place.
i'm also a student at a uni in North America and i felt really depressed around my first term. did you only recently start feeling like this or has it been for a while? I went through a really REALLY bad phase where i cried on the phone to my parents everyday....so it might be a passing phenomenon.

anyway
what i did was - hang out with a different crowd, try and get involved in some other activities and check whether my courses were actually interesting to me (which they weren't)

maybe you should attempt some of the above.
having said that, my uni is in a city so there is usually stuff to do if you're bored.
Reply 18
Loves Lip Gloss
ermm, that's why you have to be 18 to attend most universities, because you have to fend for yourself etc...i think you should take a year out then go back when you're a bit older.
being 18 for me is just a few weeks down the road. whats the point of taking a gap year for that? Its not like I'm gonna change drastically and be totally able to "fend for myself" in a few weeks. But the rest of the problems still remain. :s-smilie:

I wont be able to change the people around me definitely (the dumb asses who dont want to go out etc), and even if I get my learner's license, the rules state that I have to wait for one year to get my full driver's license, no matter how old I am. So its still a long wait. Its also a long wait for getting a job too. The thought of all this is making me depressed.:dontknow: