Feeling empty after finishing IB? Here are some tips

This is a continuation from a previous comment thread. I’m adding more general advice. Some parts are copy pasted (sorry, but I’ve added more stuff at the end and I feel like this is better as a stand alone post :)

We’re all “adults” now, and we’re all done IB, so we’re at a time where we basically don’t know what to do with life. Some of you might be burned out from the two year struggle, some don’t know what to do without it.

Here are my suggestions for fun things to do, for everyone.

For the pure ass FUN:

Now, it’s important to stop working from time to time (aka the work life balance) so STOP studying. You’re done IB (even if you’re still doing it, you should take breaks.) there no point to continue studying in the summer to prepare for uni or whatever, because you WILL be burned out. So, do something fun! Take your mind off IB.

1. Meet up with your friends, go get ice cream or go to a picnic, escape a room, go to a restaurant, go bowling, swimming at the beach (if possible lol, don’t go freeze your tits off if it’s cold where you live), go do SOME activity with your friends, you can still talk shit about IB, explore your plans for Uni, get excited about life again! There so much more to it than just studying! If you don’t have many friends, solidify your friendships with the ones you have or go make friends! Also, hand out with your family and do something nice for them. They’ve had to deal with your shit for the past two years so it’ll feel good to give back.

2. Watch movies, tv shows, read books. This one is self explanatory, but legit ALL the shows you’re been postponing watching man, just watch them. I’ve watched, just yesterday, Marvel movies, romance, started Game of thrones. I’m watching LOTR for the first time, I love it! Yeah, enjoy the bliss of pure escapism, even if you worry about nonexistent homework, eventually you’ll forget. Take a day or two to just binge watch, but don’t become addicted and not do anything else this summer.

3. Take up some hobby! Legit, cooking is fun! You can cook stuff for your family, try recipes, experiment and make your own. You can try baking too, and even baking difficult recipes you see in restaurants that only have like a tiny portion (there’s a reason: it takes forever). If you’re a planner, then plan recipes and go shopping for food. It’ll teach you a life skill, help your parents, and be fun and satisfying at the end. Other hobbies: painting, singing, dancing, playing music (learn an instrument, even if it’s like the John Cena theme on the recorder lol), start knitting, making crafts, composing, gardening. the list goes on and on. Pick one! And master it

4. Exercise!! This should be way up there, but I don’t think anyone likes this cause no one really likes to exercise. However, exercise isn’t just running till you die, it can be fun! What comes to mind, boxing, martial arts, dancing, swimming, skating, skiing, weight lifting, etc. Pick something and do it once a week. Get ripped lol! Make sure you also eat healthy, this ties in with cooking. If you start eating better you’ll feel even better. Try it, eat veggies, a bit of meat, something fatty but good like an avocado, and rate how you feel at the end of the day, versus eating cheesy nachos and cake all day (rate yourself after the sugar crash of course) and you’ll see you feel much better with a healthier, but still fun diet. The feeling of lethargy can very well be tied to not feeding your body well. So eat well and exercise once or twice a week.

5. Prepare for prom/graduation day. I know this sounds silly, but that’s the next step in your high school career essentially.

Generally for the girls: pick your dresses (don’t go overboard, I know you wanna look hot, but it’s also a waste of money to just spend hundreds on a dress you’ll wear once), go on Pinterest for inspiration, talk to your friends about it. Plan how to do your hair, nails, makeup and PRACTICE it if you’re doing it yourself. Use a coffee sugar scrub to make your legs all smooth and get rid of cellulite. Go get your acne in check, go to the doctor so he can prescribe medicine (make sure to get products and hat don’t clog your pores. cosDNA is a great website for looking at if ingredients clog your pores (This is for the guys too). Start eating well, so you can look alive and not dead at prom. Start sleeping well, give yourself face massages to reduce puffiness. Just overall pamper yourself! Give yourself some love, you deserve it. It’s been ages probably.

General tips for the guys (some are from me, some are from my guy friends, I’ve asked them for this thread): DO go overboard for the suit: you’re gonna wear it more than once, make sure it’s well fitted, you feel like David Beckham wearing it. Make sure it’s a color that complements your skin. For example; don’t get a paper white shirt if ou have olive skin and yellow undertones, it’ll wash you out. Get a cream or muted ivory. Don’t be afraid to ask for some advice from the internet. There are videos for how to wear your suit and how it should fit. Get your acne in check too, not as easy as it sounds, but go to the doctor and check out the link in the girls part. Hygiene, fix your hygiene (including nails and stuff) There’s nothing more attractive than a guy who smells nice. But don’t go overboard with the Axe spray, no one wants to suffocate lol. Pamper your skin too, don’t be afraid to try mud masks, coffee scrubs, lip scrubs and make sure to MOISTURIZE your body too. You’ll thank me later. SHAVE your face for prom or whatever. I’m sorry, but no guy that’s 18 and under looks good with a “beard”. Trust me it’s just a bit of stubble and it’s usually patchy, and the moustache peach fuzz, just shave. Grow a beard when you’re older lol. According to my friend: shave with one sharp blade preferably (the multiple blades will cut you a lot and are ineffective (use lip balm on small cuts)) and go with the grain (depends some said against, some said with. I don’t know, usually for girls at least, shaving with the grain doesn’t give you ingrown hairs so idk), use moisturizing after shave. Get a hair cut, and look nice on this big day!! Watch queer eye for tips, legit they have great tips for grooming.

Now for the more PRACTICAL (?) tips:

1. Learn a language! I’m going to Austria this summer so I’m starting to learn a bit of German (Guten tag! Ich hasse IB? Lol idk). watch movies in your target language, learn grammar, meet up with people. Using duolinguo and Babbel is fun but according to other language learners, not very good for actually learning that language. Immerse yourself as much as you can. Don’t be discouraged if you wanna learn a language no one learns. It’ll be hard, but it you really love it. Go learn it! One of my friends is learning Turkish from her parents, which is pretty dope.

2. Get a job and save up to travel. If you’re taking a gap year, have more than 3 months break or even if your DO have two months. It’s worth getting a job and saving money. This should be number one. I think that travel is so important just because it gives you a different perspective in life. There’s so much more to life than just IB. Even if say you go to the same country but like Hawaii, it’s still awesome. If you’re American, go visit Mount Rushmore, Portland, hell, go to Canada. You don’t need to go backpacking in Tibet to travel. But in case you want to, get a job and save up 60-70% of your income for travel and spend the rest on whatever. I hope you can stay with your parents till the end of the year. Since they’ll be paying for your rent and food so you can save more. Also save up for school tuition. Find a budget, save up, plan a trip at the same time to be motivated to save up lol, and plan your days, explore what you wanna do and go immerse yourself in a beautiful culture! You’ll probably be 18 so you might go on your own, and hopefully your parents will let you. Especially if your can prove you’re very responsible. Seriously, travel is not expensive but a lot of people think it is. You can travel on the cheap, but make sure you go to safe countries if you’re going alone. If you want more tips for this, I’ll be happy to help.

3. Learn life skill (insert skill share sponsorship lol). No but seriously. If you’re going to live on your own later in life. You need to learn to cook, clean, help your parents they’ll be grateful, do laundry, learn to pay bills, basically run a household on your own.

4. Go shopping! This sounds again, stupid, but it’s practical. This is for the guys as well. You’re starting university soon, internships, research, etc. Make sure clothes fit and are made from good quality and breathable fabrics. It’s good to have a wardrobe you’re comfortable in (fyi, those Adidas sweatpants on guys look HOT), and one that’s stylish and highlights your features. So start building a great wardrobe too. First impressions matter— like it or not people judge you from how you look. It’s not shallow either: who would you trust with running your business if you had one? Someone who makes an effort in how they dress or not?

(Now for the life advice from teachers and other adults)

1. Learn about FINANCE. Go to r/finance and other subreddits. This is one of the most important, because chances are, you’re taking loans to pay thousands for school. It’s important you know to make a budget, save money, be frugal. Two Cents from PBS on YouTube is also good. Learn about investing and your 401k and mutual funds and whatever. You don’t wanna learn about this when you’re 60 and have no money to retire and are in debt. Good money habits start when you’re young. No one teaches you to become financially better off in school, so you need to learn it yourself. You know people always say: imagine if you can start investing at 18, you’ll have a million dollars when you graduate. Guess what, you can! Get a job and the money you save, invest in your future. Even if you start with 100$. It’ll grow. Also, separate your bank account from your parents at 18. You want to do online banking and you don’t want anyone taking your money (this happened to a few people on reddit actually).

2. Figure out what you want to do with your life. A lot of us, don’t know what we wanna do. There’s the expectations, and then there’s what you REALLY wanna do. Obviously you have to be realistic. You can’t become a starving artist if say you want a family along the line. So start making plans. There’s something called ikigai , it’s a Japanese philosophy for finding your reason of being (this sounds ridiculous, I know, but it’s also pretty damn practical). Fill out the Venn diagram. It’ll help you narrow down your options in life and your priorities. It’ll help you answer the question: what do I wanna do with my life? Also, write about people you envy and why you envy them. This will help you create a “dream” life of sorts so you can work towards it. No point becoming a doctor if you’re gonna drop out of Med School half way through cause you’re depressed since it’s not what you really want. You’ll just end up with a lot of debt.

3. Do one thing at a time. If you start playing violin, working, planning, meditation at the same day, you’re gonna burn out. This should be gradual. You have time, and trying to build habits at the same time— not good and doesn’t work. Things start to feel like a chore rather than fun.

Lastly, pat yourself on the back. You did it. You’ve finished IB, you slayed the beast, and now you’re free. Enjoy your freedom, your precious time, and the friends you’ve made along the line. I’m literally crying just thinking that I’ve actually made it. You guys, the r/IBO people, have made this experience so much more worth it. Thank you to all the alumni and students who helped me with school when I asked for it. u/TemplarKnight for the IB resources that I couldn’t really afford otherwise, you’re the best! The mods (yes you) for keeping my posts up and just generally being good people compared to other mods on reddit. You keep this community running so thank you. I don’t know if you’re all gonna get the grades you worked your heart out for, but know that by finishing IB, you’ve demonstrated tremendous ambition, discipline and hard work. Even if you don’t get your predicted grades, know that you did the absolute best you could do and I’m proud of you for that. I’m really proud of how far you’ve come. I’ve seen my friends grow into amazing people, and I know you’ve grown as well. You’re gonna become the best of engineers, doctors, nurses, scientists, psychologists, computer scientists, researchers, teachers, professors, professionals, artists, psychologists, entrepreneurs and so on. You are gonna do so great with your life, regardless of how much you get on the diploma. You people are BAD ASS. Congrats class of 2019! Now go party!

Submitted May 26, 2019 at 10:45PM by eliza188902 http://bit.ly/2M6KAeC