<p>I recently had to go on medical withdrawal from college in the middle of my last term due to severe depression and anxiety, which I've been dealing with for the past several years. It was the last term (I go to Dartmouth, so am on a term system) of my freshmen year (summer) and had to leave in the middle of a study abroad. I'm planning on going back eventually, but am now really nervous to do so. My GPA isn't that bad (3.63), but I had a lot of close calls due to my depression and anxiety. I missed class a lot, and had to do some special assignments to improve my grade quite often. Although I have not officially attempted suicide, I got really close to doing so several times while in school and haven't been able to go through a term without at least one major spell. I need to finish school, and I would really like to stay at Dartmouth, but I'm wondering if I'm not cut out for being so far away from home at such an intense institution.</p>
<p>I made use of the mental health resources on campus which were able to just keep me afloat, but I haven't been able to thrive. I'm worried about what issues I'll face later on, when I'm even more stressed with upper level work. Also, my anxiety is mostly social anxiety, and am worried about being on campus and living in the dorms again (which was rough for me).</p>
<p>Does anyone have any advice or experiences dealing with depression and/or anxiety in college? How did you cope and did you get through it? I'm trying to get an idea of what my future in school looks like with these conditions so I can best prepare for what to do next and am looking for any advice that would help me contextualize my situation.</p>
<p>Join an exercise group to have something to funnel your depression out with. Consider transferring closer home (I know it’s Dartmouth and that’s an amazing accomplishment, but your health is more important). Consider getting an anxiety dog (yes they do help! and the should accommodate you and if anyone asks, just lie and say the dog detects some sort of issue for you and gets help there should be something obscure out there for that). Continue using your school’s health services and maybe even seek a private therapist? Build a support network of friends or professors. Do volunteer work because that tends to be good for people with social anxiety. It’ll give you something to do, something to feel good about, and make you feel like someone depends on you.</p>
<p>OP, the fact that you have considered suicide changes the context. Graduating from Dartmouth – or any school – is not as important as making it through college without a crash and burn situation which will be harder to pick yourself up from. You sound very self-aware and I think it is really commendable that you can ask for help in moving ahead. Note: I am not by any means suggesting that the actual place is at fault, or that you can’t eventually thrive there. What I AM saying is that to post a message to strangers that you have considered suicide means that you are not doing well, and your mental health needs to take priority right now. ^ post is very helpful if you honeslty feel you have it in you right now. But if in your heart of hearts you don’t, then by all means talk right now to someone you trust and make a plan. As a parent I can tell you that your well-being is the most important thing, nothing else comes close. Your life is so precious, don’t ignore your self-perception if your mind borders on harming yourself. </p>
<p>I would think about why you want to stay at Dartmouth. If you are feeling that you just want to finish, to prove to yourself you can do it…that sort of thing, I’d rethink that. Sometimes we are hard on ourselves and think that making a change is some sort of failure, when staying in a bad situation can really be a failure to give ourselves what we really need, and what will really be best to make us happy. Please do continue to seek help, including seeking the support of your family. It is often so difficult to see the solutions when you are in the middle of a situation, and talking to counselors can really help you to sort things out.</p>
<p>Thanks for the tips. I have a while before I have to ultimately decide if I’m going back to Dartmouth, but I’ll start looking into my transfer options in case that will be the best decision. I wanted to stay there because it was the only school I have that isn’t close to home where I have at least somewhat of a support system, but maybe I should give the local schools some more thought. If I do go back, I think I’ll try to do what fantasticfailure suggested and be more involved. I know it’s hard on my anxiety, but involvement does seem to help my depression, it’s just challenging. I might check the dog thing out too. I remember the floor below mine had an emotional support dog, and it seemed helpful. Thanks for the advice.</p>