Class of '18 now in 2019. blimey.

Sorry if this has already been covered:

Has anyone's DC applied for reduced prescription charges (HC1 form) and did they receive any discount?

DS1 is turning 19 this week and is on regular medication, so I'm wondering if it might be worth him applying for this.

DD is looking at student accounts, and doesn't want an overdraft. She likes the odd party but doesn't have the stamina and won't have the time to party every night.

DS1 is feeling quite flush at the moment. The £500 bursary has just come through and a generous grandparent transferred £100 for his birthday.

Let's hope he has the foresight to save some of it for the summer break between student loan payments. He is still on the books at the tea shop / cake company, but they have taken on new staff and won't be able to guarantee him many shifts.

DD isn't spending much. Well you don't when you barely leave the flat do you?

When I went to uni there were people who had maxed out their overdraft within the first few weeks of their first term. They then opened another student account and used up all of that overdraft too. They've tightened up on having more than one student account since then, obviously. There have always been students who run up ridiculous amounts of debt very quickly due to partying.

Dds spending is still out of control. And her bank card has been stolen.

Lonicera
I do think some students struggle to budget, which as Kitten says they will regret later.
Ds is managing well on his monthly allowance - (he is funded 100% by us), but doesn't drink which probably makes a difference. He spends a lot of time doing sport and at the gym so after the initial annual fee was paid he has relatively few outgoings.

Is a lot!! DS drinks, but pres bought in Aldi, and college bar or 'spoons once or twice a week. He us as likely to watch a film on a laptop with hot choc with his staircasemates as he is to go out drinking. He has just booked two college balls though, or rather, one 'event' and one ball, at over £220 for the 2 events...but apparently covered by last term's savings. I found this out tonight and was really surprised. Seems he would rather blow out on a couple of nights than spend consistently throughout the year.

It's the drinking Panda.

Lonicera we topped DS up to full loan, and bought him his first shop of the term last term and this, and he managed to transfer a reasonable amount into savings at the end of last term! I think this is relatively unusual, but he is budgeting well, cooking cheaply and not out drinking every night. I suppose if your DD's bf's rent is taken up by his loan 1k overdraft for 1.5 terms is still pretty high.

It isn't lack of parental contribution in this case Kitten, but profligate spending.

I was on Mirtazapine rather than Fluoxetine. It made me feel worse rather than better for a couple of weeks, but once it kicked in properly made a huge difference. Is there any chance your DD could do the assessments later?

No. They haven't even got a flat yet.

Have they had to pay terms rent and deposit on accommodation for next year?

How common is it for students 6 weeks in to their second term to have nearly reached their £1000 overdraft?

Hope the GP appointment goes well.

It's common for fluoxetine can cause stomach aches, nausea and unsettled bowels for the first few weeks.

Rarely, fluoxetine can cause mood to drop even lower and suicidal feelings to worsen. If this happens then let the GP know straight away.

We were told that so she started taking them over the Easter holidays. They can slightly upset your stomach to start with, but DD is fine with them now. It sounds like your DD is very much like my DD used to be. She still has wobbles, but is so much better now. Good luck.

She has agreed to let me take her to the GP. So I'll be sorting that out today. Hopefully we get a nice understanding GP who will listen to me (because most of the issue is DD not being able to speak to strangers, she won't be able to speak to the GP).

I have heard that the meds can make you feel worse for a couple of weeks before you start to feel better. Did that happen with your DD lonicera ? She's got tests she needs to do this week so if they're going to make her feel worse at all she won't want to take them this week.

She has agreed to let me take her to the GP. So I'll be sorting that out today. Hopefully we get a nice understanding GP who will listen to me (because most of the issue is DD not being able to speak to strangers, she won't be able to speak to the GP).

I have heard that the meds can make you feel worse for a couple of weeks before you start to feel better. Did that happen with your DD lonicera ? She's got tests she needs to do this week so if they're going to make her feel worse at all she won't want to take them this week.

DD was put on Fluoxetine by a very understanding and approachable GP. She really listened to DD's concerns and told her that since CBT hadn't worked she should go down the meds route. Her dose had to be increased for A levels, but she is now back down to one a day and is considering stopping them completely.

Takind anti anxiety meds did make a big difference. I am astonished at what DD can and will do now that she wouldn't do a year ago - take trains involving several changes on journeys she has never done before, make telephone calls to stangers, get a job.

The change was very gradual, but a year has made a huge difference. I hope that this can be resolved. Anxiety can be such a block to a fulfilling life. Taking the first step to talking to the GP is difficult, but it sounds like it is a very necessary step. I wish you and your DD all the best

No not yet lonicera because she hasn't been to see a GP yet. I'm currently trying to persuade her to let me make that appointment. I'm also trying to persuade her to let me make an appointment with a therapist because 3 sessions of CBT that the uni offer aren't going to be enough.

My DD is doing French as her extra subject because a lot of her first choices didn't mesh with her timetable. She is finding it hard and time consuming. She had to do a talk on mobile phones the other day!!

I feel for her. DD is the same. She would have really struggled in this circumstances. Is she on any anti anxiety meds?

It's an English uni, but there are a lot of courses where you do a certain number of credits in your main subject, then choose an extra module from another subject to take you up to the right number of credits for the year.

She seems stuck on "they only let you change modules in the first couple of weeks, but I didn't know I couldn't cope with it within the first 2 weeks". She knows she's not going to be able to do the speaking parts of the assessments, at all, ever. I want to speak to someone at the uni about it, but she is still asking me not to. I know there will be something they can do to help, but need to speak to them to find out what. Ideally she'd be allowed to switch to doing a different module which is entirely assessed be exams, which don't stress her out, that she could self study to catch up. "Maths for computing" would be ideal, as that plays to her strengths, she could self study during the Easter holidays when she's at home, etc. But anything where she can catch up without needing to talk in seminars would do. Or even sticking with the language and watching a recording of the seminars so she can keep up with the content without having to actually go to them, and then scrapping the oral exam and just trying to scrape enough marks on the reading, writing and listening exams to scrape a pass.