I’m afraid to leave the community into which I have only recently found myself actually feeling a part of. It took the guts of three years – and now my course is almost finished. What the hell do I do with my life?!

Transition phase

For anyone going through a major life transition, be it from school to college; college to the outside world; your current college course to another; an Erasmus programme abroad; or even just an upheaval and relocation to another home address, the most important thing is not, as most would assume, to ensure you keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times, or making sure you do everything correctly and in accordance to consensus (snore).

It’s to keep your thoughts in check and the way you process all this new information, new acquaintances, and ultimately new chapter of your life. It is truly a mind-boggling experience, being shoved mercilessly head first into a sea of people, locations, and information, half of which you didn’t desire or even know existed in the first place.

Excitement in the uncertainty

This is where I’ll make my first positive affirmation; daunting and devaluating as this unknown realm of adulthood all sounds. You cannot deny that there is also a certain element of excitement to it. Sure, I don’t have the slightest inkling where on earth I will be twelve months from now. I’ve no idea how I will be paying my bills or funding my ever-intensifying relationship with Urban Outfitters and Topshop. But isn’t that half the fun??

Stumbling along your way

As someone whose experience has led her to believe that last minute plans always work out to be the most rewarding, I can most definitely see the exhilarating aspect to it all. Starting out with nothing and stumbling your way blindly to somewhere you’ll be happy, because, after all, that’s really what it’s all about, isn’t it?

Happiness. In my experience you’re not going to be happy anywhere unless you’re happy with yourself. Which could lead me on to subtly redirect this train of thought to promoting healthy eating and general wellbeing (which of course is also vital to your continuing happiness), but let’s just focus on the external factors, before I get too distracted and go make myself some green tea…

There really are so many options out there for young people today. With the ever-increasing amount of college courses and opportunities that now exist, you’d be absolutely foolish to barricade your possibilities into one room or onto one route for your life to take.

How far you’ve come

Sure, it’s scary. It’s daunting. But, so was that first day in playschool. Look how far you’ve come? How many new experiences have you had since then, and dealt with accordingly? It’s going to happen you know. You’re GOING to finish college, there’s no point trying to deny it or prolong the time you have to make any decisions.

Start with the blank canvas

If you’re like me and have that big naked, blank canvas in your head that stretches out ahead whenever you think of September 2013. Try and look at the positive side of it – it’s blank. It can become ANYTHING you want. Anything. I just want to live…and be happy?! Is that too much to ask?

All their thoughts were turned towards one Holy Grail. Hoping to make it to the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final on the 9th of September

Months of preparation

They knew that if they could make it that far they’d be able to hang up their helmets afterwards and take a well-deserved break. Hopefully as All-Ireland champions.

And they did it – they accomplished their goal. Both teams faced off in a tense showdown filled with drama and determination.

But by the time the sun set over Croke Park that evening, It became apparent that neither team would be returning home with the cup.

For the first time in 53 years, the final score was a draw. A replay scheduled for three weeks later.

Shocking news

Both sets of fans were in shock. It was a second chance at victory, but it also would require another three weeks of rollercoaster emotion.

And how must the players have felt? They’d been waiting so long for their day of reckoning, only to have everything postponed.

This Sunday they’ll gather once again. Summoning up every last reserve of strength and determination. The final home of the Liam MacCarthy Cup will be decided.

How to cope

When bolts from the blue happen to us, sometimes it can leave us reeling.

Whether it’s failing an exam, losing a job or even just getting unexpected news, life can sometimes throw us curveballs.

Working on your problem-solving skills and coping strategies is important so you don’t feel too overwhelmed when things don’t go according to plan.

Stay calm

Kilkenny Hurling Manager Brian Cody has this to say about how he coped with the news of a replay:

“You just have to adapt. You sit down, discuss, plan, work out the best way forward and you realise very quickly that it’s still a game of hurling you want to play.”

He’s right. Staying calm will help you focus on what’s happened and the best way to deal with it.

Positive self-talk

Try to think of the positives or opportunities in what has happened. Challenging your negative self-talk will help you feel better able to tackle what lies ahead.

Galway Captain Fergal Moore certainly feels like his team is ready to tackle Kilkenny this Sunday, despite the upheaval.

“Because (last) Sunday’s game is in the past now. We can only take what we can from it, learn and work to improve, and put those into practice for the replay.”

Whichever team emerges triumphant from this Sunday’s clash, it’s sure to be a fight to the finish.

There may have been setbacks along the way, but the Galway and Kilkenny players have all shown us how to keep our eyes firmly on the ball.

We don’t really celebrate Thanksgiving in Ireland, though apparently there was a traditional Thanksgiving in O’ Donoghue’s in Dublin last night Rihanna stylee. But, there’s no harm in stopping and thinking about what you’re thankful for every now and then.

Health and well-being

In fact, many psychologists have been lauding gratitude as very important to our health and well-being. It seems that being a grateful person can help you mange stress. The positive outlook that thankful people have is also said to be an immune booster.

Lifting your mood

It’s actually starting to sound like a bit of a wonder trait, but if you think about it, it’s easy to realise what you appreciate when you’re in good form. So, maybe reminding yourself of these things can lift your mood when you need it.

So much about gratitude is about people’s outlook and perceptions and the Irish “count your blessings” attitude in our culture is why Ireland ends high up in the happiness scales quite a lot.

No, it’s true we do. The UN is always telling us we’re nearly topping the satisfaction charts.

Positives of the day

These are indeed tough times and it can be easy to get swept up in negative press  but it’s important to remember to take time out to, yep you know it, count our blessings.

By stopping each day and listing three things that were good, or you enjoyed or appreciate, whatever they are will do you wonders and help you stay optimistic in the winter months.

Judging by photos online today, there are few people grateful they went to O’Donoghue’s last night, getting to meet Rihanna.

So, go on give it a try and post your three positives below.

“Never get a job”

When I told people I was thinking of coming home their responses were pretty disheartening. Even my own mum thought I was mad. As much as she missed me, she thought I’d “never get a job here”.

Where I grew up

My reasons for coming home were many and I did have a list of pros and cons.  I had made many friends in Oz, loved my job with Inspire and well let’s not get into the weather. At the end of the day, I’m Irish, all my friends and family live here. This is where I grew up.

Not too shabby

I just wasn’t comfortable with the idea of never being able to come home because of the economic climate. So I came home and you know what? It’s actually not all that bad

At home

I’ve been home about three months now and I’m not going to say it has all been sunshine and lollipops (especially not sunshine). It’s been a huge adjustment but I’m finally starting to feel at home at home again.

Challenges

It’s been tough adjusting to live with my parents again after being out of home for years. Trying to catch up with my friends while managing to take time out for myself as well worrying about money, work and study have certainly kept me busy.

How to manage

I feel the need more than ever now to make preparations to stay sane for the imminent winter (Like taking up belly dancing classes!).

I think tips I’d give to anyone who is also moving against the traffic would be:

1.    Give it time. Moving country is a huge adjustment and all change takes time to get used to.
2.    Take time out for yourself. It’s easy to run around trying to please everybody especially after being away so long.
3.    Get excited about being home. Don’t loose sight of all the little things you love about Ireland. It can get tough but stay positive by planning for the future.

It’s awesome to meet you all.

Roisin

Support

Or even you haven’t moved out of home yet, and it could be time, well gone the time. No matter what seems to happen Ireland is still expensive. There’s no question jobs are harder to get and in some cases wages aren’t what they were, so moving out may not be an option. You could find yourself not well and needing your families support. 
In each case, even though it’s the helpful option, it could be the tough option.

Personal space

It’s hard to try when you are a young adult living with your parents to get your space and give space, as believe it or believe it not, they need their space too. Suddenly when it’s a house full of adults it can all get a bit claustrophobic.

There some ground rules that can help you all, making life easier for all of you when, for whatever reason, you find yourself having to move home or can’t move out.

Communication

Like most relationships the most helpful thing to prevent conflict happening is communication from the outset, but it’s not the magic secret. So take a look at moving back home for health or financial reasons.

Well well well, what a weekend for sport! Exhausting. Not to mention finishing it off in Coppers last night.

This weekend was more than one lesson in realising never count your chickens, rest on your laurels or think that the race has been won before it’s been run. It’s a game of two halves.

Not good enough

Ireland, against all the odds, beat the Wallabies in a game they had been anticipating for the last two years. Going into the World Cup, no one had a good word to say about the Irish team’s recent performance and they started the tournament poorly.Their match against the US left them and their fans very despondent with Brian O’Driscoll saying it wasn’t good enough.

Not getting complacent

But they were resilient, bouncing back this weekend with their brilliant 15 – 6 victory. At the same time, they’re wary about getting complacent, which arguably was what Australia were. It’s not over, we’re only half way, they stated.

Thriving support

But the star of the show seemed to be the crowd. “You’d swear we were in Dublin with that support … it was about time we gave them something to shout about” said O’Driscoll. You could see the team thrived on it. We all need support and maybe that’s it, no matter how professional you are you can only rise to expectations, so negative commentary has a negative impact.

Complete bias

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that it felt like an All-Ireland match in Croke Park. Funny that, as the next day in Croke Park was the All-Ireland. This time Dublin were the underdogs against Kerry. We’ve many friends in Kerry but we need to be very clear, Bernard Brogan is an ambassador of ours and has done great work for us, so couldn’t even possibly begin to be neutral. Apart from the fact UP THE DUBS anyway. Sam’s coming home! Ahem.

Who could believe it?

Croke Park was trembling, trembling they said, at the end of the match as Brogan (did we mention he’s our friend?) put Dublin ahead by a point and Kerry equalised. But then, ice cool Dublin goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton scored the winning point. Dublin couldn’t believe it. Kerry couldn’t believe it. It was unbelievable! Very graciously though Kerry’s manager said, “Fifteen minutes ago, we thought we had it won. But that’s life.”

Mindset

It’s been well accounted the changes Pat Gilroy, Dublin Manager, has made for the team and yesterday he spoke about the work they have put into their mindset and it’s clear he believes in his team. The talk today is all about belief and mental strength, well maybe a bit delicately after a night in Coppers. UP THE DUBS! UP IRELAND!

Joint campaign

The campaign, spearheaded by four national youth groups (ReachOut, 
Headstrong, Fóroige and BeLong To) was launched to put young people directly in touch with their local candidates.

Issues that matter

We often hear politicians talking about the importance of investing in our country’s future. So we’re asking why issues that matter to young people, like their mental health, rarely feature in political debates. We want to make sure that youth mental health becomes an issue that is talked about, by young people and their local representatives.

Energetic campaign

Get on Board for Youth Mental Health has two angles,aimed at both young people and election candidates:

▪ Get On Board Online! – the hub of the campaign. You can support the campaign and interact with your candidates through an online map. Tweets and emails can be sent directly though the site.
Videos and photos of every candidate that gets on board, as well as messages of support from well-known faces will be constantly uploaded to the site so you can see exactly who is supporting our campaign.

▪ Get on Board the Bus! – a campaign bus will be hitting the streets next week! We’re travelling to candidates around the country asking them to “get on board” with youth mental health. We might even play a little game of “Follow the Leader!”
 The open-top bus will be full of young people, a band and a camera crew and candidates will be invited on board to hear what young people have to say.

We want every candidate in the country to be asked, be it on Facebook or on the doorstep: ”What are you doing to get on board for youth mental health?”

As I waited to board the plane to come back home to Ireland, I couldn’t wait. By the end of my stay in Bolivia I had a confidence I never thought I would have. I had survived Bolivia and I was going to share that new-found confidence with everyone at home. I had learned to ride a motorcycle, build a transport business, start a small English school. I worked for a year in an NGO teaching English and doing projects for the organisation. I went on jungle trips for weeks at a time, catching my food and sleeping in makeshift camps, I learned to drive a boat, and build one too, use a bow and arrow, make medicine from jungle plants, navigate through the jungle, accompanying local Indigenous men on hunting trips. I learned to cook for myself, wash clothes by hand, fish, sell jungle tours to difficult tourists, negotiate business and stand my ground to macho Bolivian men and do it all in another language, Spanish.

I had survived the darker side of Bolivia too, the poverty, seeing women suffer twice from it, women who were now my friends, my family, the hurt in knowing that for some their potential will never be fulfilled because their country was their destiny. And the very fact that I say I survived Bolivia and they call it life. These things were hard to reconcile. I thought Ireland would be easy in comparison and so I was coming home believing that nothing could ever bring me down.

Coming home

I touched down in Dublin Airport on a Tuesday morning, and saw my confidence shattered by that afternoon. I didn’t recognise anything. There were no motorbikes, or harsh sun, hatata huts, palm leaves and heat, humidity and Spanish, Cumbia or Salsa music, wild dogs, fried banana, platano and yuka, ‘chiquita’ or ‘chao’. There was nothing recognisable to which I could transfer the confidence I had gained from another world. Things were familiar but I couldn’t remember how I had come to know this world before. I was disorientated. The realisation I had to start again shattered me and I felt all the more fooled for thinking I could be so sure of myself on my return.

And so another journey begins. I had been through many, but this was quite destabilizing. I was trying to cope with my past experiences, some traumatic, some beautiful, coping with my return home and adapting to Ireland again all the while having to think about my future.  At the same time I was so exhausted from everything I really didn’t have patience to take care of my mental health. But I was forced to. I had to reconcile myself with the questions that Bolivia left in my mind, my own notions of becoming Irish again, being frustrated financially, and getting started on a career in overseas development. I was starting to get restless, there was more work to do, more questions to answer, and most importantly more confidence to regain. I had to believe I could survive this world too.

Regaining confidence

And I am surviving. Little by little I am regaining the confidence I once had. The start of this process came in the realisation that this is normal, and that it was not easy for anyone returning home. I went to the Comlamh Coming Home weekend for overseas developers returning home. I had begun working for a Senator in Leinster House and had noticed I had problems with the little tasks. If I didn’t do something correctly I would give out to myself which started a cycle of negativity and a further loss in confidence. At the Comlamh Coming Home weekend, I realized that everyone else was experiencing the same symptoms; trouble multitasking, retaining information or data, fear of answering the phone, anxiety and disorientation. But having listened to other people experiencing the same problems I had a big sigh of relief.

Since then things have been easier. I started to pick up the phone despite my fear, begin multitasking by starting small, and concentrate on pieces of data like times, dates and peoples’ names. I realised that when I didn’t do something correctly or as hoped, I was the only one disappointed in me. Then I knew I had to be fair on myself. The most important part was congratulating myself when I succeeded and becoming encouraged by the tasks I completed.  This helped me in breaking the cycle of how I speak to myself. I’m hoping now that in the coming weeks

I will be able to break this cycle and regain the same confidence as I had leaving Bolivia, but this time in Ireland.