academic anxiety was killing me so I ran away | ep.2

Summary

Lana shares how anxiety and low confidence led her to postpone her university graduation project—and why she now sees that decision as a chance to regroup rather than simply a failure.

She began studying spatial design in 2020, but by 2022 she felt disconnected from the field and took time away from university. She went to Australia to improve her practical English, which later helped her create English-language social media content.

After returning to Korea, she continued her degree instead of changing majors, but avoided practical, project-based classes. When it came time to complete her graduation project, she felt unprepared. Communication problems at school left her out of important project updates, and she had to work on a topic she hadn’t chosen or felt interested in, all while facing a tight deadline. She became increasingly anxious and dissatisfied with her work.

With only about six weeks left, Lana decided to withdraw from the project for that year. She took a couple of weeks to rest, then returned to classes and began the project again with a different professor. She says she is now more prepared, feels less anxious, and is working with a more neutral outlook.

The experience taught her that avoiding responsibility can create bigger problems later, but that stepping back can also be useful when someone is overwhelmed. She is trying to balance her graduation work with her YouTube channel.

Lana’s Suggestions for Dealing With Anxiety and Self-Doubt

These suggestions are based on Lana’s personal experience, particularly anxiety about whether she has the skills to meet a task’s demands. They are not a general treatment plan for anxiety.

• Take practical action. If you’re anxious about an exam or task, get up and work on it instead of staying in bed worrying. Lana believes preparation and practice can make uncertainty more manageable.
• Rest when you genuinely need to. For Lana, restorative rest means sleeping and eating well and making time alone—not just scrolling on her phone. She says resting helped her recover before returning to her work.
• Ask for guidance and support. A constructive mentor can offer specific, helpful feedback. If you can’t change your circumstances, Lana suggests finding another person you can learn from or confide in.
• Consider postponing or changing direction if necessary. She says stepping away was embarrassing, but it gave her time to prepare and return in a better state.
• Look at how your life feels, not only how it appears to others. Explore other paths and experiences if your current one feels wrong. Lana encourages trying interests that have mattered to you for a long time, while recognizing that finding a good fit takes time.
• Use perspective to cope with setbacks. Lana says she sometimes reminds herself that she is still alive and can recover from a setback. This is her personal coping strategy, not professional mental-health advice.
• Don’t let other people’s judgments dictate your choices. She recalls professors dismissing ideas such as becoming a nail technician or switching to 2D design. Her takeaway is that other people’s opinions don’t have to determine your future.

Lana closes by thanking her viewers for their support. She expects to be less active on social media while she concentrates on her project and hopes to balance both parts of her life.

Notable Details

• Locations: Australia; Korea; Dongmyo, mentioned in connection with an earlier vlog.
• People: Lana; her former and current professors; her brother, whom she cites as an example of finding a path suited to one’s strengths.
• Products and services: A laptop, mentioned as a hypothetical example of a costly setback; YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. No specific product is recommended.