Thread 22 Covid Cohort - Creeping towards the Future - Personal Statements and Interviews

[OrangeCinnamonCocktail]

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting. It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, please don't within this thread. Please also be sensitive when responding to threads about grades.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue.

Our DS/DD may go down various paths (such as employment, apprenticeships, higher ed) We have decided for anyone interested they will most likely find us within the Further Ed board.

Previous thread
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/further_education/4370509-Thread-21-Corona-Cohort-Nervous-waiting-so-frustrating
Role Call below
@20newnames / DS / Engineering
@Alsoplayspiccolo / DD / English + Film
@AnneofCleavage / DD / gap year? Primary Education
@BlueMarigold / DD / Biology
@crazycrofter / DD / Child (?) + Mental Health Nursing
@Decorhate / DS / Economics + Politics
@Delphigirl / DS / Oceanography
@DoggerelBank / DS / tbc sciencey
@ealingwestmum / DD / Middle Eastern and European Studies
@EerilyDisembodied / DS / History or Environmental Management
@estherfrewen / DS / History
@EwwSprouts / DS / Biology
@Fiddlersgreen / DS / Journalism
@Fruitygal / DD / Biology
@Hattifatteners / DD / Vet Med
@Heifer / DD / Biology
@Hopeful201 / DS / Medicine
@Horace123 / DS / Classics
@icanbewhatiwant / DS / History + Philosophy
@Isthisjustnormal / DS / Comp Sci
@KingscoteStaff / DD / Medicine
@mummabear74 / DD / Environmental Science
@mummyinbeds / DS / Law + French Law
@Nard75 / DS / Maths
@NCTDN / DD / Liberal Arts
@Oblomov21 / DS / Accountancy
@OrangeCinnamonCocktail / DD / Music (uni)
@PaddingtonPaddington / DD / Music (cons)
@Piggywaspushed / DS / Social sciences combo
@ProggyMat / DD / Classics
@SandyBayley / DD / Medicine
@Seeline / DD / Liberal Arts
@singingstones / DS / Neuroscience
@Wheresthebeach / DD / gap year? Marine Biology
@whoamitojudge / DD / Cabin crew training
@Zebracat / DD / Liberal Arts or Anthropology
@ZittiEBuoni / DD / applying next year

Thanks for the new thread @OrangeCinnamonCocktail!

Well, hello, what a lovely new thread - thanks for starting OrangeCinnamonCocktail.

Must admit I switched to lurker-only mode for the last one as DD is struggling so much and I felt I had nothing to contribute except gloom.

But whatever happens here, I am following everyone else's DC with interest in the hope that we will pick up hints and tips for DD's application next year, if we get there. Fascinated to see how everyone gets on with UCAS and their chosen paths - good luck, everyone!

Thank you for the new thread.
I hope your DD starts to feel better soon @Zitti

Thanks for the list and new thread

Thanks @OrangeCinnamonCocktail, glad you managed to get the thread set up nice and early. It is nice to link all the threads together. These resources could be a useful historical source in years to come!

Thanks @OrangeCinnamonCocktail.

Oh dear@ZittiEBuoni ,please share your struggles. Your situation is isolating enough, I would imagine.
@seeline, is the offer for liberal arts? We didn’t look at UEA because it’s in the wrong direction as ours divides her time between the Midlands and the Southwest.. we did a virtual taster at wWarwick today which was simply fabulous and may have put her back on track.

Thanks for new thread Orange.
Love this list.

Thanks for the new thread and lovely list!

Zitti, please continue to post. It doesn't need to be jolly. Some gloom gives balance. We have plenty of dc on this thread with SN, anxiety, MH. We are all supportive.

I haven't had much trouble with DS1 recently, But don't forget I've had my fair share. Having a ASD diagnosis disputed, accused of munchausens and losing your Dc, although no problems recently, I am good at sympathy.

Thank you for kind comments, everyone. Dd had a medication review today and we are going to stick with it, although she has remained unable to enter the school premises this half term.

There are mocks the week after next and she is thinking of going in for them but under no pressure to do so if she can't when it comes down to it. She's in daily contact with the excellent school counsellor and their relationship seems really good, which is something positive.

Thanks for the new thread and the list is really helpful to look at and see what others are doing. Just a bit of advice needed I think DS is suffering from social anxiety. He has always been the stay at home type but now when he is in groups of people he is getting really nervous and doesn't want to speak. Before he loved doing the football at school as enrichment but he he doesn't do it anymore as he is trying to avoid being in a big group. I have tried speaking to him but he says he is fine and that he doesn't need any help.

Thank you for the list and new thread 🙂

That’s tricky @nard75. Has he told you that’s the reason he’s not doing football? Or are you just putting two and two together? You can only really help him if he acknowledges there’s an issue that he wants help with. Most schools have a counsellor either in-school or peripatetic. Dd had some CBT through school
Last term and ds has been having a few sessions with someone from the local ‘well-being team’ to help with impulsivity. He also had a session with an educational psychologist a couple of years back after he’d been diagnosed with ADHD and that was arranged by school. So there’s usually help available through school. But particularly in year 13 they probably need to do the running themselves and ‘own it’, with encouragement from you of course.

@Nard75 That sounds tricky. I'd ask him if he's not doing football because someone is being 'irritating'. Irritating can be a bit of a code word for bullying...

What fab news @seeline, great to hear.
Thanks for the new thread.

He hasn't said that it is the reason why he isn't doing football. Last term he was picked to go on a reward trip to do go karting but he said he didn't want to go. I did email his head of year to see if there was a problem. They spoke to him and he said he didn't like going to places with a lot of people and too much noise. He isn't acknowledging there is a problem but I want to try and help him before it gets any worse. This is difficult because he is refusing to discuss it.

That’s very tricky. Does he socialise in small groups/speak to friends out of school or online? I think there’s been more social anxiety as a result of the lockdowns. I spoke to the SENCO at DD’s school about extra time in exams last week and she said the numbers seeking help for anxiety have rocketed.

But if he’s just a quieter person who doesn’t like crowds there’s nothing wrong with that in itself. I suppose it’s when it starts to hold him back/stop him doing things he enjoys or just generally makes life difficult. Does he confide in anyone else?

F

Sorry to hear that @Nard75.

DD had her interview and said she thought it went ok, but didn’t get asked to play anything (but they did have her audition video). So who knows what that means. So it’s just a case of waiting to see if she gets an offer or not in the next 3 weeks…

Sounds tricky Nard, trying to help someone who is basically in denial. Just keep prodding gently /in a loving way, hoping he doesn't get narked?

@OrangeCinnamonCocktail

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting. It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, please don't within this thread. Please also be sensitive when responding to threads about grades.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue.

Our DS/DD may go down various paths (such as employment, apprenticeships, higher ed) We have decided for anyone interested they will most likely find us within the Further Ed board.

Previous thread
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/further_education/4370509-Thread-21-Corona-Cohort-Nervous-waiting-so-frustrating
Role Call below
@20newnames / DS / Engineering
@Alsoplayspiccolo / DD / English + Film
@AnneofCleavage / DD / gap year? Primary Education
@BlueMarigold / DD / Biology
@crazycrofter / DD / Child (?) + Mental Health Nursing
@Decorhate / DS / Economics + Politics
@Delphigirl / DS / Oceanography
@DoggerelBank / DS / tbc sciencey
@ealingwestmum / DD / Middle Eastern and European Studies
@EerilyDisembodied / DS / History or Environmental Management
@estherfrewen / DS / History
@EwwSprouts / DS / Biology
@Fiddlersgreen / DS / Journalism
@Fruitygal / DD / Biology
@Hattifatteners / DD / Vet Med
@Heifer / DD / Biology
@Hopeful201 / DS / Medicine
@Horace123 / DS / Classics
@icanbewhatiwant / DS / History + Philosophy
@Isthisjustnormal / DS / Comp Sci
@KingscoteStaff / DD / Medicine
@mummabear74 / DD / Environmental Science
@mummyinbeds / DS / Law + French Law
@Nard75 / DS / Maths
@NCTDN / DD / Liberal Arts
@Oblomov21 / DS / Accountancy
@OrangeCinnamonCocktail / DD / Music (uni)
@PaddingtonPaddington / DD / Music (cons)
@Piggywaspushed / DS / Social sciences combo
@ProggyMat / DD / Classics
@SandyBayley / DD / Medicine
@Seeline / DD / Liberal Arts
@singingstones / DS / Neuroscience
@Wheresthebeach / DD / gap year? Marine Biology
@whoamitojudge / DD / Cabin crew training
@Zebracat / DD / Liberal Arts or Anthropology
@ZittiEBuoni / DD / applying next year

Also @Monkey2001/DS/ Medicine for some reason my phone won't let me copy and paste the list without adding everything else on the page!

Thanks for the new thread!

@Zebracat yes offer for UEA for liberal arts 🙂

Also, DD/History here

He has always been shy and doesn't really socialise out of school. He use to play on line with friends but has stopped doing that now as well. It just seems to be like he is isolating himself. The only thing we can do is try and help him come out if it. He is doing really well at school but I am just worried that if he carries on like this how he will get on when he goes to university. Tough times ahead and we haven't even got onto the UCAS application.