[Celyn]

If you feel that being 'loud' or energetic is out of character for you, I'm wondering how you normally feel about yourself? Do you perhaps feel that you have to be loud to fit in or to feel that you are compensating for feelings of anxiety, low self-esteem or low confidence? Or is there anyone in school that you might be trying to attract attention from?

Many things can influence your mood and behaviour. It could just be related to being a teenager and experiencing mood swings brought on by the various hormones in your body. Or maybe it could be influenced by your diet (particularly caffeine and maybe some types of medication), exercise and sleep patterns. It could also potentially be related to mental health (for example, social anxiety, or bipolar) or neurodiversity (for example, ADHD). Even the pandemic might have had an effect on your energy levels as many people are now feeling restless working form home and not being able to go back to the life we used to have. It's difficult to say for sure, and we aren't professionals, so can't really do more to help than just speculate. But you could look try to track your mood/behaviour to see if any patterns emerge, and also keep an eye on your overall wellbeing such as how much sleep you are getting.

It's understandable that if you are energetic at school, but then when you have time to think and reflect, feel ashamed as to how you acted and think that everyone hates you. This must be confusing for you but try to remember that we all act differently at school than at home, or with friends than with family, but that those who matter probably won't start hating you over your behaviour. If anything, they might be a bit concerned by your change of behaviour and hope that you are okay.

It might help to keep track of your mood, behaviour and anything that might influence or trigger changes. If you find yourself feeling worse as time goes on, then you might want to talk to someone, whether that's a parent, GP or counsellor.

Hope this helps a bit and feel free to keep us updated!