DIploma, anxiety, difficult work situation
Discussion
Sorry this is a bit long, posted in career & health not sure which is appropriate so mods feel free to delete one...
Since March lockdown I have become overwhelmed much more easily - for example I had to remove part of the interior of my car, would normally just follow instructions but found it much harder this time to convince myself that I could do it (it was easy in the end)
I'm 41 & fortunate to have a relatively stress-free & well paid job, I'm modestly specialised and am mindful of broadening my knowledge to includes aspects of a slightly different function, which is that carried out by a department that ours merges with later this year. And be better qualified should I find myself redundant which is always possible. I have the opportunity to do an industry recognised diploma, the company will pay, I have the time to do it.
I registered for the diploma 2 weeks ago and last week started doing the reading. I very quickly descended into quite a state of anxiety & feeling completely overwhelmed with the amount of information I needed to take in, the self directed nature of the course, the networking (optional) with others which is something I have always shied away from as I find it awkward, the reading itself, all the tasks, and felt like I would never be able to take enough in to 'join the dots' and do anything more than 'go through the motions' with it and scrape a pass. The reaction was initially mental but quickly became physical & I found myself feeling unwell - shaky, hot/cold etc. I dropped out from the course and have never felt so relieved. I went to a good uni 20 years ago & got a 2:1 so I haven't historically had issues with academic work. It took me 5 hours to read the first 60 page chapter of the text & I have 60 chapters to read roughly for the year plus a load of extra documents.
The problem is I know it is a very sensible thing to do and would like to do it but just now I had another look to see if there was another provider that had more teaching rather than e-learning and I started feeling the anxiety coming on almost straight away after a weekend where I have just about got back to 90% normal. Like my temples being pressed in.
It is strange times at the moment and I have dealt with the lockdown OK so far without issues. I don't know whether to
a) push myself to do it, like the car interior thing it will probably turn out easier than I thought
b) just leave it but that isn't my style when I have a challenge
c) try and get some coucilling but this is likely to take a long time to help / work
d) try and get some hardcore anti-anxiety medication
I also don't really know how to tell my manager tomorrow (he's a decent guy & generally concerned about welfare / sympathetic) that I have dropped out. It's not a money issue as I had to pay for it myself & claim the money back from the company so the company isn't out of pocket.
Since March lockdown I have become overwhelmed much more easily - for example I had to remove part of the interior of my car, would normally just follow instructions but found it much harder this time to convince myself that I could do it (it was easy in the end)
I'm 41 & fortunate to have a relatively stress-free & well paid job, I'm modestly specialised and am mindful of broadening my knowledge to includes aspects of a slightly different function, which is that carried out by a department that ours merges with later this year. And be better qualified should I find myself redundant which is always possible. I have the opportunity to do an industry recognised diploma, the company will pay, I have the time to do it.
I registered for the diploma 2 weeks ago and last week started doing the reading. I very quickly descended into quite a state of anxiety & feeling completely overwhelmed with the amount of information I needed to take in, the self directed nature of the course, the networking (optional) with others which is something I have always shied away from as I find it awkward, the reading itself, all the tasks, and felt like I would never be able to take enough in to 'join the dots' and do anything more than 'go through the motions' with it and scrape a pass. The reaction was initially mental but quickly became physical & I found myself feeling unwell - shaky, hot/cold etc. I dropped out from the course and have never felt so relieved. I went to a good uni 20 years ago & got a 2:1 so I haven't historically had issues with academic work. It took me 5 hours to read the first 60 page chapter of the text & I have 60 chapters to read roughly for the year plus a load of extra documents.
The problem is I know it is a very sensible thing to do and would like to do it but just now I had another look to see if there was another provider that had more teaching rather than e-learning and I started feeling the anxiety coming on almost straight away after a weekend where I have just about got back to 90% normal. Like my temples being pressed in.
It is strange times at the moment and I have dealt with the lockdown OK so far without issues. I don't know whether to
a) push myself to do it, like the car interior thing it will probably turn out easier than I thought
b) just leave it but that isn't my style when I have a challenge
c) try and get some coucilling but this is likely to take a long time to help / work
d) try and get some hardcore anti-anxiety medication
I also don't really know how to tell my manager tomorrow (he's a decent guy & generally concerned about welfare / sympathetic) that I have dropped out. It's not a money issue as I had to pay for it myself & claim the money back from the company so the company isn't out of pocket.
What is the diploma in if you don’t mind me asking, what sector do you work?
Often when we get out of the routine of doing certain things when we do it it can feel like biggest of tasks. It sounds like your a clever guy and have a degree so a diploma will be a walk in the park as long as your in the correct head space.
I would go for A. Don’t let it defeat you. Anxiety gets in the way for me and a lot of situations however I find avoidance makes it ten times worse. Give it another shot and try and tell yourself what’s the worst that can happen. Make sure you get support if you need it. Good luck
Often when we get out of the routine of doing certain things when we do it it can feel like biggest of tasks. It sounds like your a clever guy and have a degree so a diploma will be a walk in the park as long as your in the correct head space.
I would go for A. Don’t let it defeat you. Anxiety gets in the way for me and a lot of situations however I find avoidance makes it ten times worse. Give it another shot and try and tell yourself what’s the worst that can happen. Make sure you get support if you need it. Good luck
I think everyone is a bit on the edge currently. A lot of us have been stuck with only our immediate families for far too long, bottling everything up and when we encounter something different it all comes out.
Personally I would look for an unrelated course, that there is no pressure to pass or even complete. Something to get you back into the learning and study mindset.
Personally I would look for an unrelated course, that there is no pressure to pass or even complete. Something to get you back into the learning and study mindset.
It’s all about routine with the learning/studying. I started a part time degree a few years back and always find it takes me 4-6 weeks to get back into the swing of things : education, studying, revision etc.
Set yourself goals to do during the week “go through X pages” “ answer XY questions”
Everyone different with revision, personally I’m a little and often.
Everyone learns at different paces, what works for me won’t necessarily work for you.
Personally I’d give it a shot, just go at your own pace and then your stuck ask questions
frisbee said:
I think everyone is a bit on the edge currently. A lot of us have been stuck with only our immediate families for far too long, bottling everything up and when we encounter something different it all comes out.
Personally I would look for an unrelated course, that there is no pressure to pass or even complete. Something to get you back into the learning and study mindset.
This is true however I'd say do the course but perhaps over Next winter hopefully when things are a bit more normal.Personally I would look for an unrelated course, that there is no pressure to pass or even complete. Something to get you back into the learning and study mindset.
Lot of stresses and worries at the moment.
I think 99% of people are in the same boat. We are in for a mental health tsunami of epic proportions when this whole Covid lockdown carrot dangling is all over.
Regardless of you political persuasion it's clear it has been handled absolutely shockingly.
Just keep in mind that this time it really is nearly over. Flatten the curve my arse.
Regardless of you political persuasion it's clear it has been handled absolutely shockingly.
Just keep in mind that this time it really is nearly over. Flatten the curve my arse.
Hi Jake,
If its of any assistance, I started a STEM degree in March 20 (Literally 7 days before the country was shut down) and was pretty nervous, especially considering I am 33 with two young children.
The course is predominantly self directed learning with only 1 hour of interactive lecture and the time estimate is 20 hours per subject week (I am doing two subjects per week in order to complete in a shorter time)
I was dreading the assignments but after seeking some help/direction it was simply a case of re-learning how to be in school and it is working, currently (I know only year one) I haven't had a mark less that 78 and I don't neglect time with my family either.
I think the fear to fail is greater sometimes than the will to improve and it nearly prevented me, but frankly, I looked at some of my friends who got a degree and thought if they've managed to complete one and remain incompetent, I should breeze through this.
Its a change of life and perhaps this is what is creating the anxiety, once you settle into the routine and assign your time you should breeze through. For me, as example, I now know what I need to read and what I can 'afford' not to read by looking at the target/future assignment and save hours this way, you should be able to do the same, there is a large amount of reading, some of it not strictly necessary to pass the course.
If its of any assistance, I started a STEM degree in March 20 (Literally 7 days before the country was shut down) and was pretty nervous, especially considering I am 33 with two young children.
The course is predominantly self directed learning with only 1 hour of interactive lecture and the time estimate is 20 hours per subject week (I am doing two subjects per week in order to complete in a shorter time)
I was dreading the assignments but after seeking some help/direction it was simply a case of re-learning how to be in school and it is working, currently (I know only year one) I haven't had a mark less that 78 and I don't neglect time with my family either.
I think the fear to fail is greater sometimes than the will to improve and it nearly prevented me, but frankly, I looked at some of my friends who got a degree and thought if they've managed to complete one and remain incompetent, I should breeze through this.
Its a change of life and perhaps this is what is creating the anxiety, once you settle into the routine and assign your time you should breeze through. For me, as example, I now know what I need to read and what I can 'afford' not to read by looking at the target/future assignment and save hours this way, you should be able to do the same, there is a large amount of reading, some of it not strictly necessary to pass the course.
Just thought I'd revisit this & thank everyone for their comments which have encouraged me to keep going.
I contacted the course provider again & they hadn't got around to deregistering me so all good
I've been getting up early to do the reading when I am fresh, that seems to be helping. I just got overwhelmed with not just the scale of learning, but trying to suss out what I needed to do & when, suddenly going from being not very busy to being completely occupied from waking to sleeping.
Going good so far but it's only been a couple of days. But thanks again
I contacted the course provider again & they hadn't got around to deregistering me so all good
I've been getting up early to do the reading when I am fresh, that seems to be helping. I just got overwhelmed with not just the scale of learning, but trying to suss out what I needed to do & when, suddenly going from being not very busy to being completely occupied from waking to sleeping.
Going good so far but it's only been a couple of days. But thanks again
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