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Supporting son struggling at uni

ClaudiarCasual Contributor

Supporting son struggling at uni

Hi there I am Claudiar & I am supporting a son who is 22 years old & at University. I am by nature a joyful highly empathetic person & work in a role supporting many people & running groups etc as well as being an artist & yoga teacher.

My son has PTSD, ADHD & anxiety & depression. I just visited him at uni & took him out for lunch & he is not going well. He is lacking a sense of purpose he says & is not exercising or eating well and it shows. His skin is acne & he is smoking cigarettes & weed & drinking/ partying a lot at uni accommodation. He is lacking motivation & has cut down to one subject as he says that is all he can cope with. He spends a lot of time making electronic music also - that’s seems to be his main interest. I took him out for lunch & that was all the time he wanted together. He hasn’t organised to keep seeing his psychologist who was helpful. He says he is always tired. Angry at others. Depressed & anxious. He needs a support worker but no idea where to find one or who to contact. He is in Newcastle. Any suggestions? Thank you for listening .

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In response to: Supporting son struggling at uni

Unknown userMember

Re: Introduce yourself here

Hi there @Claudiar and welcome to the forums!

I have moved your post to it's own discussion so that other members can jump in and respond to some of your questions or share their own experiences here. The 'introduce yourself here' thread tends to be more for hellos, I'm sorry if this isn't very clear! So to get a discussion happening it's good to start a new thread.

I'm truly sorry to hear that your son is struggling, and that your last visit with him felt very worrying. It sounds like you're concerned about his wellbeing and the environment he's in at uni and trying to link him in with support.

A few suggestions from me would be to trying calling some mental health support helplines like SANE Help Centre on 1800 187 263 to ask about referrals to local support. Or even Googling 'mental health support' + your area. It can be hard for members to recommend specific services as we have guidelines around anonymity for the forums.

Let us know how you go and how you're travelling, this sounds like a really difficult time 🌻

In response to: Re: Introduce yourself here

Unknown userMember

Re: Introduce yourself here

Also @Claudiar you might notice I've given this discussion a title so that members can easily find it and know roughly what it is about. However, this is your post so please change it to what works for you

In response to: Re: Introduce yourself here

ClaudiarCasual Contributor

Re: Introduce yourself here

Thank you so much for your suggestion to ring SANE & ask for support service I formation so I will definitely follow that up. Apologies if I sound frustrated it just seems a long hard road to get help. Doesn’t seem straight forward at all & my son is not always cooperative so that’s stressful in the mix too. I will keep plugging away at it & essentially remember it is from love & care that I am supporting him. 😊😀🙏💕

In response to: Re: Introduce yourself here

Shaz51Senior Contributor

Re: Introduce yourself here

hello @Claudiar

how are you and your sone going today

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SANE acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures; and to Elders past and present.

SANE values diversity. We are committed to providing a safe, culturally appropriate, and inclusive service for all people, regardless of their ethnicity, faith, disability, sexuality, or gender identity.

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