Studying in a design school might be one of the hardest places for students to attend, especially those who suffer from decision anxiety... It’s just decision after decision for so many different things, like the project’s idea, the platform, the technique, the teacher we want to talk to or to sign up for, the classes we want to sign up for vs. the schedule we want to have, etc. The last time I had a really bad decision-related panic attack, or actually it was more like a long period of anxiety, was when I had to choose a mentor for my project. I’m not entirely sure why it was so stressful for me to choose, because I knew that no matter what I'd still be the one in charge of my project, but something still got to me and fears and thoughts rushed into my head. We had about two weeks to decide and to sign up with our ranked options, and literally–not joking–I spent the entire two weeks, every few hours, talking with friends or family and making myself lists, researching some info on the teachers, anything that was in my ability to learn so as to help myself finally narrow my list down to 3 teachers out of the 20-something that were available. And, to be honest, none of what I did really helped calm my anxiety down, because all I could think of was who is “the best” for me, for my project... for a project that still didn’t exist. So I guess the thing that affected my indecision most was the amount of unknowns involved in every option I had, and having to ask myself if I would rather stick to a “safe” option (not a bad choice but maybe not the best) instead of taking a “risky” option in the chance that it may be the best in the end. These questions nagged me non-stop... I think I didn’t sleep for a week, and even when I did I would just wake up in the morning and immediately experience the symptoms of my anxiety like fast heart-beats, as if my fears were working in the back of my head all through the night even when I wasn’t actively trying to make a decision. It was pretty horrible. In the end I pushed myself and decided on the “riskier” option I had been debating on, but my anxiety didn’t end with this specific decision, although I had really hoped it would. After making the decision I kept questioning myself over and over, if I chose right or not, and what would have happened or could have happened differently if I chose one of my other options... And the most frustrating thing about being someone who suffers from making decisions is the fact that you begin to understand that the decision-anxiety never really ends.