Christmas can be the most wonderful or the most stressful time of the year, depending on your situation and outlook. Expectations can be high around this time of year and minding your own mental health should be a priority.
In this article you will find:
Christina, 24, a Jigsaw volunteer from Dublin shares her experience of goal setting.
With the year we’ve all had, having to put a lot of our daily lives on pause for a little while, it’s been difficult to keep focused at times. I find that setting goals for myself always helps me get back on track.
I have recently started to cut my wrist and I’m not exactly sure why. I am an extremely shy person and could possibly have social anxiety. At first I thought it was a way of asking for help without actually talking to people but now that I have done it I am extremely scared of anyone finding out and am now terrified of what might happen. I don’t know what to do and need help. I am a very young person and shouldn’t even be considering on self harm. What should I do?
-Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Sometimes there’s no particular reason why people start to self-harm. It can quickly become a habit that’s difficult to break on your own.
I just feel everything is so overwhelming atm, like so much expectations and pressures coming from everywhere. A lot of the time I feel like I cant cope with things everyone else can deal with. I’m just slacking in everything and I sometimes feel like failure.
I tend to jump to the worst case scenario really quickly and I’m worried I might do something impulsive sometime. I don’t really know what to do or how I’ll stop feeling this way, i always convince myself facing up to stuff is too hard to do. Do u guys know what I should do? Thank you 🙂
-Aishlinn
Hi Aishlinn,
It is such a difficult place to be in when it feels like a lot is expected of us and that we are getting pressure from every angle. When we are feeling overwhelmed, it’s hard to start anything and that can lead to feeling like a failure.
Boundaries demonstrate what we think is acceptable, or unacceptable, in peoples’ behaviour towards us. Establishing boundaries can be a way of protecting ourselves.
To help in this article we cover:
I think I have anxiety, but I am not too sure and too nervous to reach out somewhere for help. I also have very poor self confidence and find that this is affecting my life negatively. Do you think it’s worth to try to reach out to somewhere .
-mm1224
Hi mm1224,
Thank you for your question. Lots of young people wonder about whether or not they should reach out for help, so your question will help others. Reaching out for help is not easy, and it’s natural to be nervous about it.
You mentioned that having low confidence is affecting your life negatively. It makes sense that you might want to make some changes.
I am always down and sad. I’m 13 and I’m a girl I feel like everyone hates me and I’m alone. I have a few friends but I’ve been sad because I lost my very close friends and it’s hurting. I feel like I have anxiety but I don’t know. I’m really a mess and I need someone to talk to. I’m crying a lot and sad. I feel like nobody understands thank you for taking ur time
-Bb
Hi Bb,
Feeling down can make us feel fed up, teary, lonely and worried. It can also change how we view situations. We can think that people dislike us or that we aren’t good enough, even though these thoughts aren’t true. This can be exhausting and it’s important to mind yourself when feeling this way.
Shaun talks about his experience of getting support from Jigsaw.
I feel really alone right now I don’t feel I can tell my parents. I cry when nobody’s around and I bite my hand instead of cutting, it hurts but it helps me feel better. if you have any tips any at all that would mean a lot thank you.
-Doglover88
Hi Doglover88,
I am sorry to hear that you feel alone right now and it feels like you cannot tell your parents. However, you should know that you are not alone.
I’ve been thinking for a long time now that I might have ADHD and I want to get tested for it. It affects me daily and especially ever since the lockdowns and my school exams started. I was wondering how I could get tested for it but I didn’t know how
-Fluffydog
Hi Fluffydog,
Thank you for reaching out and for sharing what has been going on for you. I’m sorry to hear this has been impacting you so much.
