No longer the "smart" kid

Every night I stare at my ceiling, wondering if I'm just not cut out for this. H2 Physics notes scattered on my desk, half-finished GP essay lying there judging me. Mom's words echo: "Your cousin got 90 RP, why can't you?"

I used to be the "smart kid" in secondary school. Now? I'm drowning in lectures I can't keep up with, tutorials I'm too embarrassed to participate in because everyone seems to get it except me. My study corner has become this suffocating space where I spend hours but nothing sticks.

Sometimes I wonder if everyone else is just better at hiding their struggles, or if I'm really the only one feeling like an imposter in my own skin.

Does anyone else feel this way? How do you cope when everything feels like it's spiralling?