Daniel talked to his year adviser which gave him advice to talk to his school counselor which he did. The school counselor explained there are many options: special provisions for exams, temporary emergency accommodation, and mid-long term accommodation.
Year 12 starts the following year and Daniel comes back refreshed and not stressed even though it is year 12.
Eating Disorders – I’m not embarrassed anymore
This is a story of a young person who talks about getting through university while having a mental illness. This young girl tells us how she went through life numerous problems. She was diagnosed with a psychotic depression halfway through year 12, but she’s had the illness since 12. With depression, she was also diagnosed with Bulimia a few years before psychotic depression and she was sexually abused when she was 6 which was probably the cause for her mental illnesses. She thinks she would still have depression and bulimia despite her being abused.
Being abused, she felt dirty, disgusting, a bad person but she hasn’t done anything. She hated herself which led her to bingeing and purging. She thought she wasn’t good enough, pretty enough, smart enough and by throwing up she ate. She would really become depressed when she saw herself as a weak person who couldn’t control herself and her emotions. She had depression, did self-harm and tried to suicide because she had all these problems.
The young girl was put on medication, and found a trustworthy counselor who helped her through her time. They encouraged her to write down their thoughts, find a hobby and try to surround her with caring, friendly, happy people because that makes her easier to get out of depression.
Now she is a first year student at COFA and loves it.
Depression – Loneliness
This story is about a young person who shares their story on living with an illness that leaves them isolated. This person has a medical condition which has them lying in bed looking out of their window everything at the millions of people walking past to their daily activities, but no one notices this person. The person gets crazy sometimes because the only human contact in days is doctors carers especially when they have taken their medication, or come in for an injection or stretch his leg muscles. No one even noticed them, he had no emails at all, and only his carers for company. He felt the world had forgotten him and there was no point living. The carer begged of their friends to give them a call to talk to them and it helped a lot even though the friend didn’t say a word, but instead he said out his feelings.
Now this person tries to send emails, send texts, re-learn how to use the computer, and for hours, tries to call a close friend, an old colleague or relative every day. The person finds another way to entertain themselves when no one answers their phone, email or forgets to visit them, but tries again tomorrow.
- How would you feel if you were diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar is something to not laugh about because you cannot control it and it may lead to something very serious. It is a presence of one of more episodes of abnormally elevated levels, cognition, and mood with depressive episodes. This disorder is subdivided into bipolar I, Bipolar II, cyclothymia and other types based on the severe-ness. If I had bipolar disorder, I would experience extreme moods that can change regularly and may not related to what is happening in my life. On the other hand, when there are difficulties managing my disorder, may lose my job, my loved one and have money problems. Having bipolar disorder, I would have to make major changes in my life: Having to have medication for the rest of my life, continuous therapy sessions, change my lifestyle by regulating patterns of my eating sleeping, stress management, and relaxation. If I didn’t have Bipolar Disorder, I would spend the time treating the disorder on more useful activities which can greatly contribute to my life: starting a family, knowing that I will not pass on this disease, and earning more money.