ADAA Mental Health Blogs for the Public
College is an exciting time for many young adults. It’s a time of newfound freedom, opportunity to expand one’s social network, develop new friendships, engage intellectually and consider one’s future career paths. However, it can be a challenging and stressful time for many. For many, it is the first time they are not living at home where there is a built-in support network. First time college students also have to learn to navigate a cadre of new demands, set their own schedules, find effective routines, and balance a variety of demands in order to succeed.
Imagine one morning you wake up to a loud sound of explosion, and in disbelief find out the whole city is in chaos. There is no electricity, no tap water, grocery stores are closed indefinitely, and there is no gas for the car. Control of your neighborhood constantly transitions between different groups who may treat you differently based on your religion or ethnicity, and yourself and your family are under constant threat of torture, and injuries, or even loss of life. This is what happened in Syria.
Friends and family are great at being the go-to support for the occasional ups and downs we experience in our day-to-day lives. Venting to them can feel uplifting, but in order to learn tools to overcome life’s challenges feel and feel empowered in the long run, seeking professional help may be the best route. However, sometimes there is a barrier. The most common being the costs that seems to get in between people wanting to create change but not having the funds to do so.
You can do pretty much anything you want in this life except willingly or carelessly harm others. Of all of the demands society places on us, to be hygienic, to stay healthy, to be organized and strive for protection... no burden on the self is higher than the one to do no harm, especially violent harm. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) that this subject is such fertile ground for struggling with uncertainty.
Separation anxiety is something that most parents know about. Many parents will fondly recall the days when their infant could be held by anyone and then recount that there was a time with their child when this changed.
I’ve had this terrible thought I can’t get out of my head. I saw a post on Facebook from a girl I met at a party in college and remembered an incident from ten years ago. We were both pretty drunk and started fooling around. I went back to her room, and we ended up having sex. I don’t remember much else. In the morning, it was awkward, but she didn’t seem upset. We never hooked up again. I hardly ever ran into her. But when we did see each other, she was friendly. Still, I can’t stop thinking I raped her. What if I was so drunk I don’t know what really happened?
