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Live video Q&A Loneliness and relationships – student wellbeing in COVID-19 lockdown

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Welcome to our third TSR Answers Live Q&A,
on Thursday 4th June at 4pm

Loneliness and relationships - student wellbeing in COVID-19 lockdown

Being a student in the middle of a global pandemic is tough. When we asked you what was affecting your mental health the most, loneliness was one of the top concerns, and we've also seen loads of you asking questions about relationships. Isolating without (and with) your significant other, starting new relationships and dealing with break ups is one thing; but, on top of that, many students are living in close quarters with siblings and parents and trying to find ways to deal with the added pressure that might be creating.

In this Q&A, we’ll speak to three experts:
Richard Graham: Consultant Psychiatrist; Clinical Director at Good Thinking
Amber Newman-Clark: Education and Wellbeing Specialist at Brook
Rebecca Jackson: Suicide Prevention Advisor at PAPYRUS Prevention of Youth Suicide

I think this is a great chance for you to hear a bit about what other students are experiencing right now, perhaps the science behind how our brains react in these sorts of situations, and some practical advice from mental health and wellbeing experts. You can find out more about the panellists and their organisations over here.

We are looking for some quality questions to kick things off, so if you have anything on your mind or any concerns now will be a great time to reply in this thread.

Then come back here on Thursday, June at 4PM where our panelists will appear live at the top of the thread and will begin answering your questions.

Sign up for this session and the many others we will have lined up over the next few months here!

To view this event live you will need to become a member, sign up to TSR here!

As this Q&A is focused around sensitive topics, we have enabled anonymous posting for this event. This means you can tick 'post anonymously' when you made your reply, and your username will be hidden. Please be considerate and respectful in your posting, and consider using a spoiler tag for any triggering content. While this Q&A does include medical professionals and mental health/wellbeing experts, they will not be able to give specific medical advice. If the topics discussed in this thread or Q&A have affected you in any way, please reach out to any of the organisations listed above, or you can get in touch with The Samaritans.

Hi,

As a student, lock down has took a toll on my mental health. I am part of the shielding group with severe health conditions which means I have not left the house at all since the start of lock down. I have found it difficult to deal with my academics, family and friends. I myself am a mental health ambassador, which means people come to me for help with their mental health. I am the type of person who can help others and not myself. Do you have any tips on relaxing as a productive and academic person who feels guilty for 'wasting time'. I would really appreciate some advice.

Thank you x

Reply 21

username3503154

Do you have any tips for people who are feeling constantly annoyed at their family, just because they see them all the time? I try to stay in my room to avoid them and do school work but I think this is doing more harm, as I never really get anything done.

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 22

CatusStarbright

If students are having difficulties whilst living back at home with their family, specifically in terms of personality clashes or difficult dynamics with their parents, how would you advise going about having constructive conversations with those parents about the problems the student is experiencing by being at home?

Reply 23

Anonymous #7

Hi. I'm an A LEVEL student from Pakistan. I'm studying privately and I was planning to go abroad for my higher education. Can you please tell me what is going to happen to the students who were planning to study abroad? Will we change our plans and instead study in our home country?

Reply 24

Anonymous #8

How do you survive lockdown if you don't have any friends or family to talk to?

Reply 25

Anonymous #9

I feel alone, lost and confused. I’m really struggling to find a purpose for anything and it’s all so demotivating and I think it’s affecting my health, wellbeing and studies😩.

Do u have any tips/tricks on how I could start to resolve this matter?

Thank you.

Reply 26

Anonymous #10

I have moved back to live with my family - just thought it would be safer and easier to provide for myself and get some help with supporting myself through these weird times, as soon as lockdown started. I am looking to move out again but only when things have died down .... possibly even 2021 now :/
I have issues with my dad who's very controlling, overbearing and just plain rude (shouts over me and doesn't let me explain myself even when I haven't done anything wrong) e.g. doesn't let me spend money even though I am in my mid-20s... like I said, very controlling. What advice do you have for a situation like this?
Thanks so much :smile:

Reply 27

m.akbarshah

hi,
we know that during COVID-19 all educational institutions r closed so can u tell me, 1) how should we make ourselves productive and avoid our brain from being washed off from the things we have been learning since our school life has started.
2)And, how should we control our negative actions like : anger, not able to focus properly etc.... :s-smilie:

Reply 28

CaramelCamel

What are the best ways to check that friends and family members are okay? I always get 'fine thanks' responses but I feel like people just say that because they don't really want to talk about how they actually feel.

Reply 29

BlinkyBill

Careers Forum Helper

Hi everyone!

Thanks for your your questions so far. I'm really looking forward to hosting this panel this afternoon, and our experts have got some great insight to share with you.

Please do keep posting your questions here, and remember we're answering live questions during the stream too, so feel free to ask while we're chatting later too. We're going to try and get to as many questions as possible!

See you all at 4pm. :smile:

Reply 30

Obolinda

Volunteer Team

How often should you contact a friend

Reply 31

Aneeqa>

Why is it so important and what do we learn from it

Reply 32

Aneeqa>

i think you should do it at least once a week

Reply 33

Evil Homer

TSR Community Staff

Hi all! This event is about to go live :smile:

If you still have questions you want answered feel free to ask them while we are live and we will try our best to get to as many as possible :smile:

We hope you find this useful! Enjoy :biggrin:

Reply 34

Anonymous #12

I have really been struggling with feeling very depressed and down because I see in shows how great other people's family life is and everything, e.g. in Modern Family, and reflecting on my own family I don't feel like I have that connection. I have been feeling very alone because I don't seem to have any relationships that I feel like are bringing me joy in this time and even though I have very loving parents I don't feel like I have a deep bond with them. It's really been dragging me down and I am having troubles falling asleep at night because I feel so alone

Reply 35

RazzzBerries

Chat Forum Helper

What do you think is the best way for me to help friends who are having issues with their mental health? I have one particular friend who is having these issues with anxiety/depression, but she doesn't particularly have understanding family members she is in lockdown with. I want to alert my sixth form support team, but she doesn't want me to and they haven't been the best in terms of supporting her either. Any advice please?

Thank you for this live, really informative! :h:

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 36

Anonymous #13

I'm a university student currently who will be spending the summer alone in my student house. I only have two close friends in the area and they have a lot going on themselves, so we're not in touch much. I'm feeling quite lonely. Given the many restrictions on social life still in place, what would you suggest I do to develop a greater sense of connectedness?

Reply 37

Anonymous #14

I have had a very unexceptional past that was marked by laziness and self-isolation. I lived in one country for ten years but to me it felt like ten years of isolation, as although I managed to come out of my laziness when I turned 15 I was never really able to fit in to the social groups at the institution I was studying at for my foundation year and my first year in an undergraduate degree. Three years ago, my family was planning to move to a new country and during this time I felt very guilty about my past laziness and how much time I wasted that I could have used to gain knowledge and to build up skills. I was determined to try to make up for it. When my family moved to this new country I thought I had found some new friends and something to live for that would give me motivation to make up for my past. But I didn't really fit in again, and I had one unresolved addiction that became worse. I often want to have a relationship, but I am worried of being caught up in the concept of "cosy mediocrity". During the first two semesters at this new university in this new country, I felt that I was doing very well but in the third and fourth semesters I feel as if I am falling into laziness and I think I have burned myself out and I am not sure how to get out of it. Other than this unresolved addiction that I had in the past, I think I had also developed an addiction to studying. I feel that the COVID situation had accentuated my addiction, and I feel as if I have screwed myself really badly. I wanted to study so many subjects at once, but now I am struggling to finish assignments and studies for my core subjects. Whenever I think of my subjects, I feel like crying just thinking about it. How can I resolve this syndrome that I have of wanting to be everything and wanting to know everything?

Reply 38

Other_Owl

Is it just me but the live video isn't showing?

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 39

Evil Homer

TSR Community Staff

Original post by Other_Owl

Is it just me but I can't find the live video.

Hi, what are you seeing on this thread?

Can you try the below:

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