Study Support

The survey has been comissioned as part of the Pound in Your Pocket campaign and poses questions about how students fund their living costs while studying, and about the support they receive.
 
NUS are particularly keen to hear from part-time students at The Open University as far too often national policy is developed with only full time undergraduates in mind. NUS wants to hear what you think works well, what needs to change and about how you are supported.

Those taking part in the survey will be entered into a draw to win a cash prize of £500 or one of t10 runners up prizes of £50. The survey should take around 20 minutes to complete and can be completed confidentially.

• Take the survey
   

“Studying seems pointless when you think you’re dying of a terrible illness,” says OU student Ailsa Roddie. She’s working towards a psychology degree, in part to pursue a career in the field, and to help cope with the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and hypochondriasis she was diagnosed with as a child.

“I was diagnosed with OCD and hypochondriasis – an OCD spectrum disorder – at the age of five or six-years-old. At its peak, I used to stay up all night washing my hands, I refused to eat because I was afraid of being poisoned and I avoided ever swallowing because I was afraid of germs.”

“I experience more distressing symptoms episodically, maybe every couple of years, and these symptoms have evolved over time. True to my hypochondriasis, though, a few days or weeks after hearing about an illness in the media I may start to notice symptoms and become convinced that I have it. The unfortunate thing is that extreme anxiety actually produces real symptoms to the extent that the doctor is compelled to take me seriously. 

Distorted thinking
“I may also be troubled by ‘intrusive thoughts’. For example, if I go into a shop I may become terrified that I will shoplift and be unable to get the idea out of my mind, although this is not something I have ever done or would want to do. After I have paid, I still worry that there is something in the bag that I forgot to pay for and I half expect that security will appear and accuse me.

“If this kind of distorted thinking goes unchecked, and I am constantly worried about being terminally ill or guilty of a crime I might somehow have unwittingly committed, extreme anxiety becomes depression.”

'The idea of studying psychology was a direct result of my recent experiences with OCD. When I was experiencing a lot of difficulty, researching OCD and depression helped me to understand what was really going on and find ways to cope with it'

Ailsa, who’s in her early 20s and lives in Edinburgh, is studying towards a psychology degree with the OU, currently doing DSE212 Exploring psychology. She values the flexibility the OU offers, allowing her to cope with her illness, volunteer and follow her passion for theatre as well as working towards a future career clinical psychology, at her own pace.

“This course is a way for me to test my interest and aptitude. It is also the first step towards a degree that would make me eligible for the Graduate Basis Chartered Membership of the British Psychological Society, which I would need to go on to study clinical psychology.”

Ailsa already has a BA in Economics and Theatre Arts from Cornell University, and is studying psychology part-time at the OU while also volunteering. The subject is helping her learn more about mental illness and how the brain works, but it can sometimes be an additional cause of anxiety.

“The idea of studying psychology was a direct result of my recent experiences with OCD. When I was experiencing a lot of difficulty, researching OCD and depression helped me to understand what was really going on and find ways to cope with it. It also turned out to be fascinating and in turn opened the door to other areas of abnormal psychology, which lead me to start reading about psychology in general.

Fear and focus
"Having said that, there is a surprising amount of overlap with my previous studies in economics and theatre, and I have always had an interest in the psychological aspects of these, for example, in behavioural economics and in the performance of identity.

“In a period of high anxiety, concentrating is difficult. Studying seems pointless when you think you are dying of a terrible illness, and it is difficult to focus on anything other than this fear. I now realise that it is more effective to take a step back and do whatever is necessary to feel well before trying to tackle studying sometimes. Spending time on it without getting anywhere is not only pointless but generates further anxiety.
 
“Another problem is that I find it difficult to read about illnesses of the brain, which are useful for understanding how the brain works and figure significantly in the course. I suppose this is not unlike the famous ‘medical student syndrome’ and I hope that with exposure it will pass. Exposure is a very useful tool in dealing with OCD.”

'It's inspiring to be around people who take their individual challenges in their stride and just don’t let anything stop them'

The OU offers support to students with disabilities and Ailsa has been up front about her diagnosis.

“I decided to declare OCD as a disability because I had to take a break from previous studies as a result of it and thought that maybe if I had been open about what problems I was having sooner, there might have been another way forward.
 
“The OU got in touch with me to clarify what they could do to accommodate me. I suggested that if a period of high anxiety were to cause me to fall behind I might receive help to catch up. The lady I spoke to, who was unbelievably kind and understanding, suggested that my tutor could take the initiative to get in touch with me if there appeared to be a problem and I agreed.”

Aside from studying, Ailsa volunteers to help get an insight into psychology careers and finds it “inspiring to be around people who take their individual challenges in their stride and just don’t let anything stop them”. She also blogs.

An honest approach
“I have created blog templates in the past but I never got around to actually updating them so my blog about mental illness is really my first. It definitely helps to focus my mind. If something is bothering me, I find it is easier to carry on with what I need to do once I have figured out exactly what it is, typed it up and sent it off into the ether.
 
"It has other functions too. For one, deciding to be honest about my experiences is my way of trying to let go of the shame that I carry with them. Secondly, it helps me to keep track of how I am thinking, which can change quite dramatically depending on whether I am anxious about something or not, and learn from it.”

Find out more:

• Study with the OU – Psychology
• Read Ailsa’s blog, It’s Psychosomatic
• Support for students with disabilities

Happy New Year everyone! I certainly hope you all had a good one and that you’re all refreshed and ready for the year ahead, because I can feel already that it’s going to be a belter!

'My epiphany came when I realised that the problem isn’t my lack of motivation to study, it’s the setting in which I’m trying to do it'

In the past I’ve always tried to make Saturday my ‘study day’. Gordon is usually at work on Saturdays so it gives me the whole day to get stuck into my books, but it rarely works. I end up doing the washing or finishing off the odd jobs we haven’t managed to get done through the week so I’m lucky if I get a couple of hours done. So that clearly doesn’t work.

My epiphany came when I realised that the problem isn’t my lack of motivation to study, it’s the setting in which I’m trying to do it. If home wasn’t so filled with distractions I’d probably be able to do more but since I can’t take the distractions out of my home, I’ll have to take my home out of the study equation.

So I decided to try something completely different for me. I dropped Gordon off at work at 9.30am on Wednesday 28th December, hopped on the Metro into the city centre armed with my books and made my first ever visit to the City Library. I found myself a nice empty desk on the sixth floor and plonked down intending to spend the entire day there. I was hoping that if I was sat in a nice quiet library without a computer I’d be able to concentrate better and maybe manage to get through a full chapter before the end of the day.

Something incredible happened. I got through THREE chapters. In fact, I had to leave the library early because I got so much work done I finished the book and had nothing else with me to study! I absolutely couldn’t believe it! On the Friday I tried a different version and rather than traipsing through to the City Library I went to the library which is a mere two minute walk from Gordon’s work and this worked just as well.

'For the first time in a long while I actually feel really positive about my forthcoming studies'

The benefits of going to this smaller library are excellent; for starters it saves me a £2.10 return Metro fare to town. It also means that I can call into Gordon’s work to have my lunch with him which saves me the £5 or so I’d have to spend in town to get something and it takes me away from the lure of the city centre shops (they’re not that much of a lure but there’s a well know CD and DVD shop just around the corner and that’s my Achilles’ heel). The only downside is that it closes at 5pm on Saturday and Gordon doesn’t finish until 6pm but there’s also a supermarket right next to it so I’m thinking in that hour I could go and do my weekly shop so it kills a couple of birds with one stone.

I know what you’re all thinking; what’s so interesting about going to the library to study? I know, I know, but I’d just never thought of doing it before and it REALLY WORKED! It’s just the perfect plan, Gordon’s at work every Saturday so this means I get a full day of real studying done each week without having to steal from the rare time off we do get together.

For the first time in a long while I actually feel really positive about my forthcoming studies. Such a simple solution, practiced by no doubt thousands of other students already, but this is not only going to help me keep up to date it’s also going to save me money by keeping me entertained/engrossed for what can otherwise turn into a wasted day. So I have to do my washing through the week instead, no big deal. So I have to work those odd jobs around making the tea on a weeknight, no big deal. So I have to do my food shopping in a quick hour once a week only, no big deal, in fact, brilliant because it’ll help me keep track of my spending a bit better.

Epiphanies eh. What a revelation.