Feel so silly with college work/anxiety issues

LegacyUser

Hey so I've been struggling with anxiety issues for a while and I keep getting myself worked up into a tizzy over the silliest things regarding assignments and I end up doing nothing. It takes me ages to get started on things generally but for some reason, I cannot get this particular assignment started. It was due 2 weeks ago and the lecturer kindly gave me a 2-week extension on it to get back on track. I fully expected to have it done by now but yet again the deadline has come and I still haven't gotten over this fully. I've got nothing done I don't know what to do. It's not like I've spent the 2 weeks slacking either - I've been in the library almost every day working and researching this but I've still not put pen to paper so to speak. Well I have but I've barely made a dent overall.

It's due tomorrow and I feel like the biggest idiot in the world that I've let myself get back into this position/not gotten out of it in the first place by now. I know the topic inside out at this stage but I haven't written a thing down for whatever reasons. It's worth such a huge percentage of the module as well that I can't stop thinking about how I'm going to fail the year if I don't do well (i.e. nothing constructive yet I can't stop myself thinking this way).

Any advice? Am I being naive to think the lecturer will give me another extension?

karaokeman

If you know the topic for your assignment inside out why don't you just write it now?

I've had this issue in college before and if your under pressure just do what you can.

Handing in a poor assignment tomorrow would be better than not writing an assignment at all.

Its like in secondary school with the short questions you would of had for subjects like History and Geography. Any answer and any percentage it would give you is a hell of a lot better than no answer and 0%.

You need to stop thinking while you do your assignment. Don't think about the consequences, what will happen if you fail, if you do well. Just write it and if you've been to the library even better. Reference the material you've found in the library. You know the topic inside out so find somewhere the material you've researched will fit in with your thesis.

Good luck

woodchuck

Writing a first draft is the hardest part. So seriously, just write SOMETHING down! It doesn’t matter how bad you think it is, that’s what editing is for. And editing is so much easier than writing the first draft. And you might even surprise yourself, often there’s a lot of decent stuff in the first draft, it just needs to be polished a bit.

So stop thinking and start writing!!

James W

You need to focus! Are you interested in the topic at hand or what you're studying?

Sit down and start typing - it's always the hardest bit for some unknown reason. At some level I thnk that you're looking for attention or waiting to be reprimanded...

If the lecturer gives you another penalty free extension then they're soft! Sometimes, lessons are only learned the hard way!

LegacyUser

James W wrote: »

At some level I thnk that you're looking for attention or waiting to be reprimanded...

I think this is a bit harsh. Anxiety can be so overwhelming sometimes it can be crippling.
I think this particular issue in academia affects people who tend to be perfectionists and place high expectations on themselves. It's called performance anxiety (nothing to do with issues in the bedroom department, but a similar concept nonetheless).

This is not a trivial issue which is simply solved by being told to put pen to paper and just write. If it was a simple as that the OP wouldn't be in this fix in the first place. I can hugely empathise as I suffered with this exact same issue myself.

OP, if there is a Disability Office in your college it might be worth dropping in to them to have a chat and explain you have been suffering with anxiety in relation to completing coursework and see what they have to say.

Walls

How many words is it OP?

djcervi

Hi OP! I'm just letting you know you're not the only person to go through this, and you won't be the last. I suffer very badly from anxiety, which is due to low self esteem. I always feel that whatever I write is not good enough when I'm doing assignments. As a result, I always put myself under a lot of pressure to perform. While it may have worked for Secondary School and the first two years of College, it isn't working this year. I let the fact that they counted towards my degree result get the best of me, and I worried a lot more than actually sitting down and organising myself a lot better. I have also other personal problems relating to self-esteem and family that didn't help either. So I ended up having a massive panic attack, and had to recuperate. I got extensions on all three essays after I explained my situation to my GP. He prescribed me medication to control my anxiety, and recommended extensions. That was a great help, as I was all over the place.

At the minute, I have two essays to do in two weeks. I just handed in one essay yesterday which I ended up rushing after pondering it for far too long. It came to the stage where something relevant was far better than nothing. Sometimes, that is the case. I still had other essays to deal with, so had to make that decision. I'm just hoping that I have passed at the very least. My subject is Literature, so it's quite hard to predict.

I'm just wondering whether your problem may be omitting information. I went to see the Student Learning Officer in College, who said that could contribute to the problem.

Also, make sure to break up your Essay into parts. I find it overwhelming to think of the Essay as a whole. Some people are different. I find it good to have three subpoints in the Introduction, which are going to answer the question. Be open to changing them around depending on your research. Then it's purely, say what you are going to say, say it, and say what you said. It's not as easy, in practise. I'm purely saying this to you as I always felt there was a winning formula for an essay. The fact of the matter is there are no right or wrong answers, unless you are completely off topic.

If you feel very anxious, maybe a visit to the GP would be a good idea. Also, your College Counselling Service should be able to help you.

Best of luck!

Overheal

sosilly wrote: »

Hey so I've been struggling with anxiety issues for a while and I keep getting myself worked up into a tizzy over the silliest things regarding assignments and I end up doing nothing. It takes me ages to get started on things generally but for some reason, I cannot get this particular assignment started. It was due 2 weeks ago and the lecturer kindly gave me a 2-week extension on it to get back on track. I fully expected to have it done by now but yet again the deadline has come and I still haven't gotten over this fully. I've got nothing done I don't know what to do. It's not like I've spent the 2 weeks slacking either - I've been in the library almost every day working and researching this but I've still not put pen to paper so to speak. Well I have but I've barely made a dent overall.

It's due tomorrow and I feel like the biggest idiot in the world that I've let myself get back into this position/not gotten out of it in the first place by now. I know the topic inside out at this stage but I haven't written a thing down for whatever reasons. It's worth such a huge percentage of the module as well that I can't stop thinking about how I'm going to fail the year if I don't do well (i.e. nothing constructive yet I can't stop myself thinking this way).

Any advice? Am I being naive to think the lecturer will give me another extension?

You're going to have to drop that class if you can't pass the class without completing the assignment, with at least a C / 75% or whatever the hell your grading metric is. At least thats how it works for me, we can withdraw before a certain date with a Null Grade that won't affect our GPA or standing. Important for scholarships and things.

On the problem you faced, did you organize yourself? I never get anything done if I havent written down what I have to do. If I try and just do 'mental notes' for my to-do list, it never gets done. If it's not in front of me, it doesn't appear tangible, and thus I never consider it urgent; thats when I spend a Saturday night playing a video game instead of studying.

Your brain is the worst place to store that kind of information. Your brain is constantly updating. wont get into the psychology a whole lot, but if you dont get thoughts out of your head they just keep cycling. You get stuck in your "crap I still have to do this" mode, and never get out of it. WRITE IT DOWN. I use a whiteboard, and notebooks. And my iPod. Because when it's written down you can structure it, and organize it. Instead of having "History assignment, Calculus Test, Lab Paper" floating around in your head in what is usually an indeterminable order [and it reads more like Historylabtestcalculushomeworkstochiometryiwannaplayavideogameimhungrydeterminingthelimitheyanynewpostsonboardsofafunctioncovalentbond in your head] (thinking of Spaghetti-O's) on paper you can see a list. OK, first I have to:

-Do Calc Homework, p.117 #30-80 odd
-Get sources for Research paper
-Type up lab report

etc

You have a prescribed Priority for things you have to do. And oddly enough, they do get done.

Back when you get to crunch time like you're in though, you just have to go into Triage Mode. Basically you have to cut your losses, and focus on *only* the things that are going to get you the most returns. ie. last semester I had a math final that could have failed me. I had no time to re-study all the material, or completely remedy the stuff I didn't know. So, I sat down and did the math: what do I need to score on this test to get my C? I figured that out, figured out how much material was going to get me to that goal, and cut out trying to over-study on my weakest areas. Got a B too. Expected a D. Anxiety will do that to you though. Time Out, Step Back, and look at your Big Picture. It will help you a lot.