Taking another semester off?

After being pushed by my mom and T, I took the fall semester off from school because mental health wise I wasn't doing well at all and they didn't want to see me crash and burn.

Well just today, my pdoc told me that she thinks I should take next semester off because I'm still not stable and she doesn't want to be messing around with my meds while I'm at school. Understandable, but absolutely not what I wanted to hear. I've had it at home. I'm sick of being with my parents and my siblings all the time and I hate one of my jobs and am getting sick of the other, but employment is hard to come by around here etc. I would move out but I have no money to pay rent for anything. I also really miss my school and my friends there and I'm already going to graduate late because of my semester off and I really don't want to make it even later.

The thing is, I have wondered if I should go back to school or not. Even before my pdoc said anything going back to school was something I was worried about. As I said, I'm not stable, I also lack concentration and just generally am not as functional as I should be

I don't know what to do! I know none of you can make the decision for me, but maybe you could weigh in on the situation?

Does your school have any online classes so you could add one or two to your job mix, etc. and still be home? My county library system has wi-fi (as well as computers) and my husband and I have taken our laptops there for a change of scene (the branch closest to us, the AC/heating/duct system was too noisy for my engineer husband :-)

My school didn't have a course I needed so I took one online at another college, by correspondence, after filling out forms and getting the okay from my college. That was kind of interesting; maybe make a list of the courses you have left and make up your own course of study for one that allows testing out of the course? My college had that where you could kind of do your own self-study and pay a bit to take the test to try and test out of having to take it because of life experiences, etc.?

Anyway you can change one of your jobs into a distance co-op course with your school?

I would go along with your mom, T and pdoc and take another semester off but figure out a way to, "When you are being run out of town, get in front of the crowd and make it look like a parade!"

No, my school doesn't have any online classes. If I were to take the semester off I would be best off taking classes at the local community college.

Only my pdoc thinks I should take the semester off, and basically only because I'm not stable on my meds yet. My T thinks it would be good for me to go back, and my mom thinks I should wait and see how my new meds start working before making a decision.

That is a hard decision to make, I have considered taking time off from school in the past but decided to just take a lighter class load by withdrawing from a class that looked tough. I don't know if that is a possibility in your situation but it worked well for a compromise for me.

Two questions that my college adviser told me to ask myself when I was considering taking time off are 1. Do you think you will be able to perform well in your current state? and 2. Will taking the additional time off effect any financial aid or student loans that you are currently receiving?

I hope you are able to feel more stable soon, that feeling is awful.

In order to keep my scholarships etc. I have to be a full time student (12 credits). I could do that...I do question my ability to function at a level high enough to do well at school but I want to go back more than anything...

wow what can I tell you? My T PUSHED me to study although now that the semester is in the middle i feel i am neot stable to function and i am way behind

I took one extra year, because I freaked out and had a mini-melt down. As much as I tell myself that year is nothing compared to history, I still headdesk over my choice.

Just sayin'

you may never be "stable enough" unless you actually push yourself do go there and do it.

yeah in the end you never know you true condition until you meet the circumstances

I suppose, although there are certainly times where you KNOW for sure that you aren't stable enough.

Right now isn't one of those times and I can probably push through everything and make it, but who knows?

going back is hard though... the longer you are out, the harder it gets. You "forget" things and simple papers no longer come natural to you.

If you have the option to try and to quit if it seems too hard, it might be worth it. Look, don't want to be discouraging, but you may never be as stable as you would like to be. Maybe work is less stressful as doing nothing and having all time in the world to focus on your bad situation (in another unhappy experience of mine I did not get into master's program and was unemployed..... and it almost cost me............).

imho, Ts and pdocs don't know the full implications of "time off" often. time off means not only stress free time. It means time to focus on stupid ****, social isolation (what are you supposed to talk about to people? "eh, I am doing nothing at the moment").

"Look, don't want to be discouraging, but you may never be as stable as you would like to be."

I think Venus is spot on with this. Chances are, you'll never feel 100% ready. I'm kind of in the same situation...being that I will be graduating high school this year and going to college next fall. Do I feel 100% ready? Definitely not! But it's a risk I am willing to take. Like Venus mentioned above, sometimes it's harder to be doing NOTHING then to be doing SOMETHING.

I find that my mental health gets worse when I have more time to do nothing, to sit with my thoughts and dwell on negativity. I hope that, if you do decide to take this chance, that it will be a positive experience no matter what happens. I wish you the best of luck!

Have you tried disability services on campus? And/or going part-time? Going to college full time while working two jobs is stressful in and of itself. Your college not having online classes doesn't stop you from taking online classes elsewhere and transferring the credits in. There are many online colleges in each state (in-state tuition benefit) that work cooperatively with your core college. Good luck! Susan Quinn

I agree with Venus and I want to go back, it's just my pdoc is pretty much saying I shouldn't. My T thinks I should and that I should work with disability services and that's what I'm saying I'm doing.

If you want to go back and feel it would be good to try; that feeling should stay around for another semester; I'd go along with my pdoc, just to make sure, and get even more sure of myself and what I wanted to do with my life.

I've decided to go back this semester. I think it's the right decision, and if I'm wrong, hopefully I'll learn from my mistake.

I think it's a good decision! I haven't been completely stable since I've been in university, but still managed. My grades aren't even the best, but I'm still doing it. A little perseverance goes a long way.

I am a junior and some how I have survived even though I have not been stable. I have a severe epileptic seizure disorder, chronic migraines, bipolar disorder and PTSD. I have found disability access really helpful. I admit being in school with these disabilities has been torture at times. I have successfully completed all of my courses even though I was hospitalized twice. There are times I have wanted to quit but over all I have enjoyed the challenge and I have discovered that in spite of my self doubts I can accomplish so much more than I think I can.
I have never been completely stabilized with medication but I refuse to let this hinder me.