a thread on how i kept my grades up & got predicted all a* for my a levels (i am in year 12) while having an ed + depression + forced recovery: i know this was alr done by ysanglbs but i wanted to share my experience and hopefully help more ppl bc everyones different!

disclaimer: the long term solution honestly is to just recover. biologically there is no way to stop your brain to maybe not function as well as before (pre ed) when you are malnourished, REGARDLESS of whether you are underweight or not. however i know not everyone is ready+

+and i wanted to share how i cope during difficult times, especially in the past year when my ed and depression were at their worst

high restriction was honestly what i swore by- like i said its always better to recover but i know forced recovery will never work until you truly want to recover. my intake was around 1200kcal, always 1000. i didnt cut out food groups and i ate 3 meals a day for sustained energy

this is important because your brain needs at least 500 cal a day alone and i believe it would be more if you are doing draining things like studying. not to mention the energy you would need in writing, taking notes, etc. your brain needs energy for so many things like making+

+neurotransmitters to transmit energy across synapses. i know high restriction is scary for some and may cause you to gain initially but it is much better than wanting to faint all the time and sacrificing your energy which is vital for staying on top of work

2. consistent studying. i’m not saying study every single day- that would burn you out and make things worse, but whenever you have a period when you are feeling a bit better id advise you to spend even just a bit of time reviewingwhat u have learnt (tips on this to follow)

this is because itll ensure youre on top of your courses even if you have very low times. for me, i was studying on and off and sometimes my depression / body image was so bad i physically could not do anything but because i had prepared before in the year, i still did well

for example during my exams this year because of covid and forced recovery i had never felt so bad before i could not motivate myself to do ANYTHING and played ac all day. but i still got the high 90s% for all my exams because id studied before

3. tips on effective revision. firstly i make notes on what i learn, preferable close to the day of the class to make sure i understand it. i like to add in info from textbooks as well in case teachers are bad or missed anything. i make sure i consistently understand everything+

so that i dont have to cram, especially if exams happen when i’m in very bad state(literally on my bed all day until the exam arrives). but only notes are not enough, as ysanglbs already said past papers are really important. its different for diff curriculums but for alevels

they are absolutely necessary because a levels have similar question styles. regardless of curriculum, they help u find out what u need to work on. theyre also good practice for answering questions. another thing is i tried to make studying somewhat enjoyable

i know this is not always possible but even lessening the pain is good like i make pretty notes to motivate myself when my mood is good. another thing is really try to find a subject you like. i love physics so studying it can be fun sometimes (again depends on mood). imo its

better to focus on one thing you like, at least, if u dont have the mental energy to focus on everything, than to feel unmotivated for all your subjects and do badly in all of them

one technique i like for revising if u dont feel like doing questions but also want to test urself is like, getting a blank page and filling it with everything u know abt a topic from memory then double check with ur notes to see what u missed, if u have the energy to write

or if u r a visual learner like me, otherwise things like recording yourself might be helpful(i dont like this bc i hate my voice lol). testing urself is KEY imo because writing notes does NOT help u commit things to memory, it only helps u consolidate info to make it easier

4. take breaks if u dont feel good, physically or mentally.if you study somewhat consistently thru the year a break will not set you back so its honestly okay. its going to be worse if you force yourself to study, youll be so burnt out that by exam time u wont want to do anything

5. its diff for everyone but during covid times because of zoom, teachers couldnt rlly see what i was doing. i like to make+organise my notes during class and add info from textbooks if theyre explaining smth i already know, or if i finish their questions early. this wouldnt

normally be possible if not for zoom bc theyd just give me extra work but zoom cut down on the extra out of class time i had to spend organising +updating notes before

6. i personally bullet journal but i find it useful to generally know what i need to get done ahead of time, again to make room for contingencies like having a rlly bad time. i like bullet journalling bc its v flexible and i can do it only when i feel like it, but its not for+

everyone. to do lists are also useful if u have a particularly good day and u feel motivated so its good to maximise ur productivity when u have the energy to work

7. for me having a clean and quiet workspace helps because i feel anxious when everything is cluttered and messy. i understand tidying is super super draining so i tidy when i feel ok (once again taking advantage of the days i feel ok). i wish covid wasnt a thing bc i used to

stay after school and work because its quiet and school was like an escape for me, from home and forced recovery and my ed so i worked much better there. finding a space that works for u helps

8. know ur goals and dont be too ambitious, baby steps!! if you are going from not doing so well you wont go to all a* over night - if you make a small goal like improving in one specific subject by even like 5% im already really proud of u. it doesnt even have to be quantitative

its already a big achievement if u manage to get up and work for even like 20 min if you previously didnt work for a while due to mental health!

https://twitter.com/awakekgs/status/1294213726699053056?s=21 oopsies i meant always above 1000 when i talked abt cal intake https://twitter.com/awakekgs/status/1294213726699053056

dont work fasted, honestly its very difficult to concentrate if you dont eat something. i work after eating because firstly being immersed in work distracts me from my ed and secondly the energy is necessary

tips on asking teachers questions for ppl with anxiety: if you dont understand anything id really recommend u ask ur teacher but i know this can be super super scary! i like to get a friend to ask with me but dont ask them to do it explicitly, like i go ‘oh do u know why....’

and then theyll say no and im like do u wanna ask the teacher with me

not only does this mean ull understand the topic better but it also shows the teacher ur engaging in the subject which is important if their opinion matters when it comes to what grade u get

11. please dont beat yourself up if you dont do as well as you wanted to. even normal people slip up sometimes and it is especially draining to be studying AND fighting a mental illness simultaneously. remember that after all this you will be stronger than others bc of this