It helps to think about being bored and being anxious in terms of "engagement". If you have too many things to handle or too many things to worry about, you may feel anxious and stressed; if you have too few things to do, you'll feel bored. So if you feel anxious, you may just be handling too much new information from Project CATCH-IT. Don't worry. Take a break and reflect about what you've learned so far and try to put it into practice. Then you can come back later with more energy to get the most out of what Project CATCH-IT has to offer.

There are two general reasons why we feel sad: we either feel sad because we had something important to us and lost it or because of something we wish we had but could not have. The best way to know what makes you sad and then fix it is to take time and figure it out. Working on Project CATCH-IT, especially the CBT section, can help you with this process. If you feel overwhelmed, take a break and then return when you're ready. Talk to a friend or Dr. Van Voorhees at bvanvoor@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu if you need help.

It helps to think about being bored and being anxious in terms of "engagement." If you have too many things to handle or too many things to worry about, you may feel anxious and stressed; if you have too few things to do, you'll feel bored. So if you're bored, you may just have not enough to do in this module. Boredom happens, in other words, when we stop taking on challenges. Don't worry. If you take a break, then come back and move on to another part, you can come back later to work on something else. You can also dig in to the program deeper; think about how the program relates to you and your life. Don't get discouraged; remember your goals and the ways you could help them with skills from the CATCH-IT program.

Worrying about something or dwelling on it can be helpful at first because worrying can help you figure out what's making you upset or what you need. But worrying by itself can't make anything better. If you find that you're worrying a lot about something, ask yourself, "What can I do to solve this problem?" If you think about solving a problem rather than about just the problem itself, your mood can improve and you'll be able to actually get past what it is that worries you. It can also help to talk to a friend or someone in your family about what solutions you can come up with to the problem. You can also talk to Dr. Van Voorhees by email at bvanvoor@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu or by phone at (773) 702 3835.

Drinking alcohol or using illegal drugs can sometimes seem like a good way to feel better or improve your mood. But in the long run, drugs and alcohol don't solve anything. They just keep you from dealing with the underlying problems that can cause depression or down mood. In the contract that you signed when you began Project CATCH-IT, you made an agreement not to drink alcohol or use drugs for the duration of the program. This agreement is important because, like any training program, you need to be able to think and feel your best to get the most out of Project CATCH-IT. Only a doctor can decide what drugs, if any, you should use to treat or prevent depression. If you're looking for ways to improve your mood, there are several methods that this program talks about, such as exercising or doing a pleasant activity with a friend, that can help without all the negative side effects of drinking or using drugs. If you have any problems dealing with the agreement not to use drugs, or if you just have any questions or comments about the policy, please contact Dr. Van Voorhees by phone at (773) 702 3835 or by email at bvanvoor@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu