I want to relapse because of school. I’m failing my second marking period and have no motivation to bring it back up. I’ve been 2 years clean of self harm and if I fail this year I might relapse or attempt suicide. This is my senior year and I have dealt with 2 major family deaths and the school still wants me to make up everything. I hate being me.
HELP YOURSELF:
- It sounds like you are pretty stressed out and going through a tough time right now. It takes a lot of courage to realize when you are struggling and reach out for support so thank you for trusting the TeenCentral community. It’s also very important to take the time to recognize your success even during rough moments. Congratulations on being two years clean of self harm! That’s a huge accomplishment and we can see how your current situation might make you worry about taking steps backwards. Take a deep breath… you are not alone and you have the strength to get through this.
- School can be hard, especially with the pressure of it being your senior year but it sounds like you have some other things going on that are adding to the stress. Experiences that we go through outside of school, especially traumatic events like major family deaths, can very easily impact our academic performance. We hope that your are taking steps to work through these losses but if you need some help, we encourage you to check out the section on grief and loss under the LEARN tab.
- You took the huge step of reaching out to TeenCentral for support but it would be great if we were able to find you additional support in your school setting also. Is there a trusted positive adult, teacher, or guidance counselor that you can talk to? They may have more insight into the situation and options to help you get back on track with your academics.
WHERE TO GO FROM HERE:
- Often times when we are stressed, it can feel like we are in a deep hole that we can’t dig out of and sometimes we don’t even know where to start. During these moments, it can help to organize your thoughts/feelings so you can step back from the problem. Have you tried any journaling or writing to help you cope? You can use it to write your thoughts, communicate with someone about what you are experiencing, or even to help you make a to do list of tasks.
- When we are going through tough times and having negative thoughts about a moment, it’s very easy to start thinking negatively about yourself. This can be normal and you aren’t alone. A great way to counter this is to ensure you take time to do things that make you feel happy and good about yourself. What are some activities you enjoy doing? We encourage you to take at least a little time each day to do something for YOU. We also encourage you to review your personal coping skills. If you do come across a moment where the urge to self-harm appears, it’s very helpful to have alternate positive/healthy coping skills that you can use instead.
- Another important piece to overcoming these tough times is to surround yourself with positive people who support you and make you happy. Who are these people in your life and have you taken the time to seek them out?
