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Ask HN: Anyone here had to deal with studying and working and depression?

8 points by coolrat ↗ HN
I'm a college student who has to work to pay for my studies. Since the end of last year I decided to take a full time programming job and started doing distance education because I just couldn't pay for my studies doing a part-time job anymore. The problem with this is that I get back home very tired and I have little time to study or do anything else, my academic performance has dropped from being far above average (potential cum laude student) to being just below average since I don't study for exams and I submit my assignment late. I stay up late just to study and learn new things since my company doesn't offer much time for personal growth. I've also started dropping subjects just because I don't have time.

I've also noticed that my academic strength has dropped since starting to work full time. I can still write boring "enterprise" code that does the essential but I've started finding it more and more difficult to deal with some algorithms and mathematical concepts which I used to be quite comfortable with just about a year ago.

I've been applying for scholarships unsuccessfully for the last couple of years since high school. So work is the only way I've been able to pay for my studies. Now I've become a bit depressed, living away from home and family and not making any academic progress and being driven to exhaustion every day for sleeping late (so I just sleep on Saturdays and do little) .

Has anyone had to deal with this before?

Any advice on how to deal with this?

10 comments

[ 736 ms ] story [ 4361 ms ] thread
maxdemarzi
Tough situation. "Real" Full time work + more than 1 hard class and 1 easy class is bound to leave you exhausted.

When I went to school I took advantage of "internships" and "special topics" classes. These let you remain enrolled in school while really working full time for an employer for a semester (+ summer). Went back to the same employer every year. This let me concentrate on one or the other and never had to mix the two.

I hate to recommend this, but can't you just get some student loans and worry about it later? In a high pay city, taking care of a 40-50k student loan is just a few years of living cheap.

FiddlerClamp
Yes, I have struggled with severe depression in the past during school and work to the point of coming home in tears because I'd have to make dinner and didn't have the energy to.

Suggestions:

1. Set a level of activity that works - the things you simply must do to survive and the things that make you happy and don't stress you out. Everything else, try to turn down or delegate.

2. It may be depression that can be treated medically. I don't know how it works in the USA, but if you have a doctor you may want to talk to him/her -- or go to the health clinic on campus once you resume studies.

Good luck. The good news is that you can climb out of a depression.

olegious
I second the student loan suggestion, rates are really low right now, I'm assuming you're in the US- you can get a loan for around 5%, $2500 of the interest that you pay will be tax deductible. This will allow you to work part time and reduce stress as you won't have to worry about paying for your schooling/basic expenses.

As for depression, exercise and socializing helps. A few years ago I was in a new country, heartbroken from a failed 5 year relationship- lowest point of my life. But you know what? That lowest point is a great time to rebuild yourself! Keep at it, things will get better!

teyc
Suffered a short bout of it.

You are going to have to re-evaluate your priorities in light of your depression. Once you manage your depression everything will get better.

You are not superhuman. Full time work and studies do not mix especially if you are depressed.

If you are able to extract about 45 minutes of time from your busy routine, start exercising daily. Exercising daily is apparently equivalent to getting a dose of morphine. It has helped me immensely.

Are you able to identify what are the triggers? Is it the worry over your grades? Some specific aspect of work?

bloodcarter
If you want to dig a big hole, you need to stay in one place. If you walk around town with a little shovel, you'll just end up digging thousands of little holes, not one big one.
bricestacey
I'm in the same situation as you. I transferred to my current university and was hired full-time within a year (age 20, pretty much as a sophomore), though I'm still trying to finish my bachelor's degree 4 years later. I work 40 hours per week. I take 2-3 classes. I have been working on a startup for almost a year and working on personal projects. It's very stressful for myself and my girlfriend.

I don't have much advice. I just know it's not worth it.

I took my job because I needed to pay for college, yet it seems to have turned into a career. I think I got carried away and excelled when I should have taken it easy and just graduated. Sure, I'll graduate with 5 years of experience and an expert in my field. I'm sure I'll be one of the few graduates without debt. But, I basically have no time to network with people at school, insufficient time to study basic concepts, no time to explore ideas further, very little time for friends, etc, etc.

It's just not worth it. I do it anyway hoping for some delayed gratification. I did quit the startup though and I'm putting the brakes on personal projects, hoping it helps.

redredraider
I know how you feel. I work 35 hours a week at an internship and I try to keep up with school and my startup but there are not enough hours in the day. I'll keep it up as long as I can. Hopefully I can replace internship/job with startup exclusively.
throwawaysad
you're overworked, and very stressed. You're probably also malnourished due to dietary decisions consisting of little more than "What's in the vending machine?" or "Where's the closest fast food joint?". If so, there's a high likelihood that your Liver and Gallbladder are both causing you problems. Depression is a common symptom of Liver issues. Add in a poor diet with high cholesterol, and your Gallbladder and liver a probably full of gallstones. increase your Ginger and Turmeric intake (to increase bile flow/digestion) for a few weeks, and spend a weekend doing a Liver Cleanse/Flush to remove the stones already in your system. I'll bet this helps you more than you'll ever realize.

Good luck in your studies.

eunomad
Time management... Even people who know how to manage time get depressed. I agree that changing your diet is essential especially If you are overloading your schedule and are under a lot of stress.

I suffered a clinical depression and by changing my diet, running and learning to breath correctly (most of us don't take in enough o2), I was able to recover without using drugs and have not suffered another depression even under extreme pressure etc.

Go first to your doctor and make sure you don't have anything wrong. If the Doc clears you, change your diet and do a bit of sports (even walking) and take a few singing classes or yoga classes (To learn how to breathe correctly)

I am currently reading The China Study which is a pretty good book about nutrition.. I know you probably don't have time to read, if you want more info just contact me and I will send you some links.

haploid
Everybody thinks they have "depression". Stop feeling sorry for yourself and learn some time management skills. Master some of the key concepts in the GTD literature.

Chances are you have a lot more time than you think you do.

Failing that, cut back on semester hours, the work hours, or both.