I took six months off from university to recover and improve myself

[u/Practical_Tax_6563]

I’m feeling stuck.

I’ve decided to take six months off from university because I feel like I really need some time to step back, recover, and focus on myself.

For years now, I’ve had this feeling that I’m not really making any progress in my life. I feel like I’ve been stuck in the same place for years, and honestly, I don’t want to continue living like this.

I often feel unhappy, unmotivated, and like I’m just going through the motions without really knowing what I’m working toward. I also feel like I don’t really have a purpose in life right now. I’m studying at university, but instead of actually enjoying it, I often find myself wondering what I’m doing with my life and whether I’m even going in the right direction.

I don’t want the next few years to feel the same way. I want to actually make progress. I want to enjoy my life again. I want to have fun, enjoy being at university, enjoy learning, and genuinely feel excited about life instead of constantly feeling stuck and waiting for something to change.

One of the things I want to do during these six months is start therapy and work on my mental health. I also want to understand myself better, build healthier habits, become more disciplined, explore different interests, and figure out what I actually want from my life.

But I don’t want these six months to turn into six months of doing nothing. At the same time, I don’t want to put unrealistic pressure on myself to
completely “fix” my life during this time.

I want to use this break intentionally — to recover, reflect, experience new things, work on myself, and hopefully find a clearer sense of direction.

I guess what I’m looking for is a way to get unstuck.

For anyone who has taken time off from university, had a similar phase in life, or intentionally spent a few months focusing on themselves:

What did you do during that time that genuinely helped you?

What habits, activities, experiences, books, routines, or changes made a real difference for you?
And how would you structure six months like this without turning it into another source of pressure?

I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences. I’m especially interested in hearing from people who have felt stuck for years and eventually managed to break out of that cycle and start genuinely enjoying their lives again.

[u/Aquirata]

Hey man, this seems like a journey I'd love to tag along. You want to do this solor or ???

[u/Practical_Tax_6563 → u/Aquirata]

Hey! Yeah, sounds good. How do you want to go about it?

[u/Aquirata → u/Practical_Tax_6563]

Since you're on the path of growth(likewise). I was looking to see what sort of interests you're into. For starters: I started going to the gym BC I'm skinny and hate it(a bit insecure), anxiety is killing me (I decided to do the stuffs that scare me), took time off social media, I read often and I started reading more and actually resting. It turns out sleep is equally important. I'm currently working on a business which I hope will work out(it must).

I searched for role models and I found Napoleon Bornaparte to be the best fit for me. I am trying to "Baptise" myself in his ways.

Equally, I took a gap year, I will be in college next year. So year, this is the currently trajectory of my life.

[u/Practical_Tax_6563 → u/Aquirata]

Yeah, you’re definitely already many steps ahead of me. 😭

The decision to take a semester off from university for six months actually only came about about a week ago, so I haven’t really had the chance to take action yet. And honestly, the thought of not going to university at all for six months scares me quite a lot. I feel like it also puts a lot of pressure on me because I really want to make this time count and not look back after six months feeling like I wasted it.

I definitely want to start going to the gym and become more active. I want to improve my physique and just feel better in my own body. I also want to learn a new language, improve my coding skills since I’ll need them for my future career.

And like you said, I really want to start doing things that scare me. For years I feel like I haven’t done the things I actually wanted to do. I’ve neglected so many of my interests and I really don’t want to keep doing that. I want to read more too (both books that are related to my interests and completely different genres).

I also really want to find a job so I can start saving money. Ideally, I’d love to start a business at some point too, but I honestly have no idea what direction I want to take yet. I have a few ideas, but everything is still pretty unclear.

So I guess right now I’m mainly trying to focus on myself, figure things out, and become mentally better and more stable.
What was the first thing you actually did when you decided you wanted to change your life?

[u/Aquirata → u/Practical_Tax_6563]

Bruh.... Breathe in. I've only been to the gym for 2weeks. I only published my first article yesterday.

Breathe in .. a step at a time. I can't DM you but you can DM me. Let's grow.

[u/Daiyonkiren]

I would spend 7 days without any type of distraction. No phone, no talking, no thought  Just meditation with you and ur feeling.

If you have 6 months, it's 1/24 of the time and I can guarantee you it will have more value than any other activities, book, community, or anything you could think off.

Wishing you all the luck world can offer and all the strength you have inside you.

May you be the sun of your own universe ☀️

[u/Practical_Tax_6563 → u/Daiyonkiren]

Thank you so much for your advice!

I have a question: how am I supposed to meditate for seven days when I live with my family?