How can I overcome intense stress and fear over my immediate future?

Hi Leira, Firstly thank you for having the courage to reach out with your question. It isn’t always easy to ask for help when feeling so overwhelmed and trying to cope. It takes self-awareness to identify that there is something that needs to be addressed and to recognise that there are steps that can be taken to move forward through them. Well done for taking that first step.                                                   

What I have picked up in your question is that there are separate points to address, one relating to your internship hours, also the future, and also the overwhelm relating to the Uni organising.

I would suggest that initial we look at this things individually, and then breaking them down to what you can control and what you have to manage. 

Anxiety and stress are a many layered thing and there are so many different types that play off of one another and give fuel to other areas of concern. Often, when I approach anxiety with the people that I work with, I first try to take a look at what exactly triggers the anxiety. Is there a catalyst? Is it predictable? Is there no obvious trigger and is the anxiety more of a constant? Then, we work on how the anxiety actually manifests. You mentioned in your question that you are experiencing uncertainty and feeling of overwhelm due to the Uni’s lack of understanding re the organising of commitments. Your anxiety may then manifest in avoidance, isolation and withdrawing from work or other areas of life that cause you stress. It can take time to really tease out these first few steps and process what the cause and effect of the anxiety is. But once we are able to truly understand it, we can begin to work toward coping with it and managing the symptoms so they do not disrupt your day to day.

Coping with anxiety looks different for everyone and you may find that works well for 99% of the population seems to do nothing for you. But that’s okay! 

There are a variety of ways to address anxiety and work toward a more functional life. We can discuss various ways of coping, self-care and other protective strategies. I feel there may be need for some gentle boundary setting. By making efforts in these areas and setting small, attainable goals, it is possible to develop a routine that helps you to, over time, overcome the anxiety you are struggling with and make your days more manageable. 

On a practical level, have you requested a meeting with your tutor or the wellbeing services team within your Uni? You may wish to approach the meeting with the points that you have raised in your question to see if you would benefit from an extension for your assignment and also for your tutor to reconsider the hours of your internship.

Happy to discuss this in further depth. 

Sending Birthday Wishes.