In the Sims 2, a child sim can be taken away by an NPC called the Social Worker if they are not performing well in school. Upon a visit from the Social Worker, the child sim is taken to her car and driven away. This removes the child from your family, and it’s impossible to get them back without exploits.

It’s a pretty harsh punishment for players. Child sims will do poorly in school if they neglect their homework, so this can be avoided by having them do their homework. This is an arduous task though, since children never do homework on their own accord and must be manually told to do it. Children often like to hide their homework somewhere obscure in the house, such as putting it on the front lawn, and they also get bored quickly doing it and will often stop to complain about their Fun need.

Still though, if you want to avoid the Social Worker taking them away, it must be done. You’ll get a warning when their school performance is dangerously low, so it’s an easily avoidable danger as long as you’re playing diligently.

August felt like I could barely focus on anything. I felt myself getting comfortable again, and I feel really disappointed with myself. I’ve also just not been kind to myself at all.

I want to get by shit back together this month. I want to end this month being proud of myself. I want to try new things, not neglect chores, keep myself fed well, work on art, talk with friends more, go on walks, not neglect my hygiene… things that all felt like mountainous tasks.

If I can’t do that this month… I don’t know what I’m going to do. Maybe there’s no hope for me. Maybe I completely failed at being an adult.

How do I even measure these things? I keep beating myself over and over for being a failure, so what constitutes not being a failure?

Maybe to become a better adult, I should embrace being a kid. Gold stars, the stereotypical symbol of juvenile achievement. But, it works as a way to count the little things. One of the things I’ve seen when people talk about with mental health is patting yourself on the back for the small things. Getting groceries, eating a meal, going on a walk… for someone who suffers with depression, these can feel like momentous achievements.

There’s nothing wrong with being happy that you cleaned your room. I shouldn’t kick myself saying “Of course you should clean your room! What’s wrong with you?” I should be happy that I did it.

Happy. That’s the key word, isn’t it? Be happy for the small things.

I’m going to honestly try this month. And I’m going to be happy. I’m going to try to be happy. If I can get through this month and be able to go “Wow, what a good month!”… I think that’ll be quite the achievement.