[ravioli.lover]

[FONT="Times New Roman"]I am very happy to say that I have recovered from depression. I am incredibly grateful for this, having been at a point where I was unsure I wanted to live just last year.

The problem is, I lost all of my studying skills and discipline through my depression. I now come home and immediately sit down and try to tackle my homework, the key word there being "try". I am held back by my impulsiveness when it comes to distractions, and therefore my lack of concentration. Before my depression, I was an A+ student, but I am now barely able to keep up with my work even with accommodations from the school. This leads to the misunderstanding that I am still depressed or that I am not trying. Additionally, my parents are making drop out of activities I enjoy to keep up with the schoolwork, which in turn makes me more unhappy and makes it harder to find the motivation to get my work done. They also want me to quit my honors classes, which I do not want to quit, as I understand and enjoy the material.

I wish I could wave a magic wand to make me productive, but for those of you who procrastinate, you know that simply isn't possible. It's not as simple as sitting down and getting it all done.

I can't go on like this. Not only is it stressing me out and taking a great toll on my mental health, it's also taking a big toll on my grades. I have my eyes set on one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country, and that simply won't be possible if this continues. (I am currently a sophomore.)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[Teddy Bear]

Welcome to PC

[Miswimmy1]

Did you have good study skills before your bout of depression? My only thought would be that perhaps, if that is the case, you are still struggling with some symptoms. You don't permanently lose all of your study skills (those are learned skills). Can you think of anything else that might be interfering with your ability to focus? Are your classes interesting? Is there simply too much work? Are you not sleeping well? Is there just something else that you would rather be doing instead, or is it pure inability to sustain attention on anything (in which case I would go back to wondering if maybe you are still dealing with some depressive symptoms)?

[Talthybius]

I think few people can be productive and depressed at the same time. Especially when we are talking about the short-term intense type of depression, not the chronic type.

[Skeezyks]

Hello ravioli.lover: I believe this is your first post here on PC. So... welcome to PsychCentral.

I'm not a mental health professional. And I can't tell you what's going on here. My personal non-professional observation would be that perhaps you are not fully understanding all of the difficulty depression can cause & the various ways it can affect a person? You wrote you have recovered from depression. But you are still struggling with impulsiveness & lack of concentration. These can certainly be symptoms of depression I believe.

The other possibility here, though, is that what you are dealing with is something other than depression. You didn't mention if you are, or have been, under the care of any mental health professionals. If you're not receiving mental health care at present, perhaps delving into what is going on with you with the assistance of perhaps a psychologist, a mental health therapist or a psychiatrist is something you should consider?

You wrote you wish you could wave a magic wand & make yourself productive. And of course, as you observed, that simply is not possible. I would venture to guess you may not find a solution here on PC either. We want to be as supportive as possible. But in order to figure out what's really going on here, finding & working with a skilled mental health professional may give you the best shot at finding a real solution.

Here are links to 9 articles, from PsychCentral's archives, on the subject of procrastination the first 2 by our host Dr. John Grohol, Psy.D. Perhaps some of the information in these articles can be of some help:

Learn About Procrastination – Psych Central

Getting Help for Procrastination – Psych Central

Tips to Beat Procrastination – Psych Central

Tips to Beat Procrastination – Page 2 – Psych Central

Getting Around To It: Causes and Cures for Student Procrastination – Psych Central

https://psychcentral.com/blog/10-sim...ocrastination/

https://psychcentral.com/blog/8-tips...ocrastinating/

https://psychcentral.com/blog/when-p...and-pointless/

https://psychcentral.com/ask-the-the...hes-need-help/

I hope you find PC to be of benefit.

[MickeyCheeky]

I struggle with procrastination, as well I know how you feel.