Lavendar, you didn't trivialise what I had written, I don't think anyone meant to make you feel that you had,and I didn't take it that way, it just read funny The dog I mentioned died about 4 years ago, he was a labrador / red setter cross and I loved him to bits, I was shattered when I had to have him put down. However, I now have an equally beautiful labrador / border collie cross and she is wonderful too, tho she has a different special place in my heart. And our bed, she hasn't quite got the message that when we say "Get down", we mean for the entire night,not just until we are asleep!!!!! And she gets beaten up by the cat, which the previous dog never stood for - he was in charge in our house, these days, the cat is!
Lyndsey, no, I NEVER felt like jacking it in, not more than once a week anyway! Everyone feels like jacking it in, I'm sure. I dropped out of my 4th year cos I was just so demotivated, it was bloody tiring being a single mum, working full time and studying too - especially when you are a perfectionist! But having had that year out, I felt much more refreshed and once I had got year 4 out of the way, I just kept telling myself I was almost there. Year 5 however, was horrendous cos I took two 30 point options, which oddly enuf adds up to more than 60points worth of work, that was a REALLY hard year. I used to be really strict with myself and timetable the week - housework on this night, will study from 6.30 - 8.30 on this night etc etc. I think the only real advice I can give you is take a year out if you need it - if you are sure you can get back into it - set yourself study targets and keep to them and use the OU website, I used to chat on first class to cheer myself up and convince myself that it was, in a way, studying. And use friends and relatives to take your children off your hands to get a couple of hours "power studying" in. Remember, you can skip the odd assignment if you are behind - oh and I never went to the summerschools!
It is ABSOLUTELY worth it in the end. I got a 2:1 and its one of the proudest achievements of my life. Once you have that, nothing and no-one can take it away from you, its yours for life, your achievement - and more so than other degrees cos you have to fit the studying in with your usual life. Keep going, you should be gettingyour books in the next month or so, its always worth starting early
email me if you want to have a screaming hissy fit, I know what its like!