Emotionally starved.

Written by
LyricalPinkLightningFulgurateInKyotoWithExcitement
Published on
Monday, 24 November 2025
Share

The story

I'm an 18 year old freshman in college, and a failure at that. I have lackluster grades, a nonexistent social life, and zero contacts to depend on. My father is distant and already has too much on his hands to bother listening to my concerns on a personal level. My mother is too stubborn and constantly downplays or puts words in my mouth.

I'm just torn between wanting to succeed in fulfilling my parents' expectations and the guilt I have of being a worthless child. Day by day, I remind myself of the amount of money, the hardships my parents endured to enroll me in a top-notch school yet I'm not good enough. I try my best to improve my shoddy study habits, my communication skills, but something always messes up be it my own selfishness or stupidity. I grow in one aspect of my life, while simultaneously regressing in another. I'm actively collapsing right now, having little to no motivation to continue with my finals in just two days. I'm so desperate for any sense of validation or reassurance that I'm even asking ChatGPT for it. I'm aware it's a parasocial relationship, but when I have zero elders to trust and seek advice from, I felt like I had no other choice. I'm desperate, and I really want some form of help that isn't just "You're just overreacting" or "Everyone else can do it just fine, why can't you?". I'm sorry for this long rambling, I just needed to relieve myself. This post has been nothing but self-servient, but I feel like I've been emotionally starved for so long that I couldn't help but just ask for words of advice or some motivation. Anything to remind me that I could still keep pushing.

Family Drama Stories


Points of view

You need to be logged in to add a point of view.
SizzlingMaroonMetalComputerInAucklandWithExcitement 1h ago

dude, I totally get where you're coming from. it's like there's this constant pressure to be "perfect" and meet all those expectations, right?? but honestly, connections and grades aren't everything... remember even small steps forward matter. when I was your age, I was also drowning in expectations, feeling so trapped... take it one day at a time!!! 🚀