In June of 2024, I moved from Silver Spring to Bowie. This change shifted my entire life—from my friendships to my environment. Initially, I was happy to move because I felt like I didn’t fit in with the friends I had at my previous school. However, my excitement quickly faded, and I ended up having the worst 11th-grade year of my life. At times, I even found myself missing my old life. Everything felt terrible. My grades suffered, I was constantly sleep-deprived, and I was extremely disorganized. On top of that, my relationship with God was weak. I idolized everything else—grades, friends, popularity, and working out—more than my own Father. This took a toll on my mental health, and I felt deeply discouraged by everything I did. If it weren’t for God, I wouldn’t have made it through. I have always battled anxiety and random moments of depression since I began my high school journey. In 9th and 10th grade, I struggled heavily because the courses I took demanded everything from me. I put my entire being into studying, only for me to fail a class. On top of that, my teacher was extremely mean and rude. There were days when I would come home and cry in my room because I hated my situation. Fast forward to 11th grade: after moving, it felt like 10th grade all over again. The classes were harsh, and since I was new, I had no one to talk to. In a desperate attempt to fit in, I fell into the wrong crowd. I chased popularity, thinking it would provide relief, but it only made my anxiety worse. I finally realized that my mental health was directly tied to the company I kept. My journey only truly began to improve once I removed myself from those people. I stopped prioritizing the "popular" crowd and started befriending people I actually enjoyed being around—people who valued me for who I was. This shift allowed me to go back to my stronghold. I had put God on hold for years, and I decided it was time to get my spark back by recentering Him in my life. Now, I am halfway through my senior year, and I have regained myself. My anxiety is under control, and the depression I experienced before is nearly gone. I’ve realized that I give these things weight; when I obsess over them, it damages my mental health. I can’t say I am completely healed, because those feelings are capable of resurfacing, but I no longer give them power—I put my faith in God first. Moving forward, I want to help those who struggle quietly in the dark. I know what it’s like to cry yourself to sleep and reach out to online crisis hubs just to feel some sense of relief. Through my profession, I will shed light on the grey areas of mental health. Sometimes it isn't about loud, visible struggles, but the silent ones that go unseen.

From a young age, my parents have made it very clear that school, in fact, is very important. My Father always told me that to secure a place in the job industry, someone with a degree will always be picked over someone without. While I understood this, I didn't truly take their words to heart until my senior year in high school. I spent years always telling myself I’d do better next quarter, then next semester, next year. It was a never-ending cycle. I finally decided to give my senior year everything I have. I was going to give all my effort until I could walk across that stage with my diploma in hand. This is the promise I made to myself and to God: that I will see through this year with straight A’s. Why do I want to go to college? And how will this scholarship help me? The questions are simple: I have a clear goal of becoming a Psychiatrist. To become a psychiatrist, it is inevitable that I attend college—it doesn’t stop there, I’d have to attend medical school and work internships as well. Ultimately, psychology has always been something that interests me; I genuinely enjoy learning about the complexity of the human brain and its myriad functions. I don't come from a wealthy family, so leaving medical school debt free will be a dream. College to me is a necessary stepping stone, and I believe it is what will shape me and my future. Though it’s a good option, I know college isn’t the only key to a successful future. There are many individuals who choose not to go through college because it holds them back from their full potential, or they choose to become an entrepreneur. However, I find it the complete opposite. I know college will bring out my full potential, and I can’t wait until I walk across the stage with my doctoral degree. Upon finishing high school, I plan to attend Bowie State University for my prerequisites before I transfer to the University of Maryland for the Medical Program. I know college isn't easy; it's physically and mentally demanding—not to mention expensive too. This is why I have proactively applied to many scholarships, and still am, because I want to give my full attention to schoolwork. With open arms and an optimistic future, I ask that you consider me in your decisions for scholarships.

In June of 2024, I moved from Silver Spring to Bowie. This change shifted my entire life—from my friendships to my environment. Initially, I was happy to move because I felt like I didn’t fit in with the friends I had at my previous school. However, my excitement quickly faded, and I ended up having the worst 11th-grade year of my life. At times, I even found myself missing my old life. Everything felt terrible. My grades suffered, I was constantly sleep-deprived, and I was extremely disorganized. On top of that, my relationship with God was weak. I idolized everything else—grades, friends, popularity, and working out—more than my own Father. This took a toll on my mental health, and I felt deeply discouraged by everything I did. If it weren’t for God, I wouldn’t have made it through. I have always battled anxiety and random moments of depression since I began my high school journey. In 9th and 10th grade, I struggled heavily with depression because the courses I took during those years demanded everything from me. I put my entire being into studying and turning in assignments, projects, and group work. My life revolved around those classes, only for me to fail one of them. On top of that, my teacher was extremely mean and rude. There were days when I would come home and cry in my room because I hated my situation and hated school. As mentioned before, I suffered greatly because of it. Fast forward to 11th grade: after moving, it felt like 10th grade all over again. The classes my counselor registered me for were harsh, and since I was new to the school, I had no one to communicate with. I fell into the wrong crowd and felt myself slipping. My anxiety worsened, and I had simply had enough. I went back to my stronghold. I had put God on hold for my entire 11th-grade year, and even during 9th and 10th grade. So I decided it was time to get my spark back. I chose to finally recenter God in my life. Now, I am halfway through my senior year, and I have regained myself. My anxiety is under control, and the depression I experienced before is nearly gone. What I have realized is that I give these things weight. When I allow myself to obsess over things and surround my life with them, it ends up damaging my mental health. Honestly, I can’t say I am completely healed, because I know those feelings are more than capable of resurfacing. What I can say is that I no longer give them power—I choose to put my faith in God first. Moving forward I want to help those that also struggle quietly in the dark when no one sees. I know because I've been there, I bet you nine times out of ten that no knew I cried myself to sleep during those difficult nights. I often found myself reaching out to online crisis hubs just to feel some sense of relief. I understand the struggles of academic performance. Through my profession I will shed light to the grey areas surrounding mental health, because, sometimes it isn't about loud, visible struggles, but the silent ones that go unseen.

In June of 2024, I moved from Silver Spring to Bowie. This change shifted my entire life—from my friendships to my environment. Initially, I was happy to move because I felt like I didn’t fit in with the friends I had at my previous school. However, my excitement quickly faded, and I ended up having the worst 11th-grade year of my life. At times, I even found myself missing my old life. Everything felt terrible. My grades suffered, I was constantly sleep-deprived, and I was extremely disorganized. On top of that, my relationship with God was weak. I idolized everything else—grades, friends, popularity, and working out—more than my own Father. This took a toll on my mental health, and I felt deeply discouraged by everything I did. If it weren’t for God, I wouldn’t have made it through. I have always battled anxiety and random moments of depression since I began my high school journey. In 9th and 10th grade, I struggled heavily with depression because the courses I took during those years demanded everything from me. I put my entire being into studying and turning in assignments, projects, and group work. My life revolved around those classes, only for me to fail one of them. On top of that, my teacher was extremely mean and rude. There were days when I would come home and cry in my room because I hated my situation and hated school. As mentioned before, I suffered greatly because of it. Fast forward to 11th grade: after moving, it felt like 10th grade all over again. The classes my counselor registered me for were harsh, and since I was new to the school, I had no one to communicate with. I fell into the wrong crowd and felt myself slipping. My anxiety worsened, and I had simply had enough. I went back to my stronghold. I had put God on hold for my entire 11th-grade year, and even during 9th and 10th grade. So I decided it was time to get my spark back. I chose to finally recenter God in my life. Now, I am halfway through my senior year, and I have regained myself. My anxiety is under control, and the depression I experienced before is nearly gone. What I have realized is that I give these things weight. When I allow myself to obsess over things and surround my life with them, it ends up damaging my mental health. Honestly, I can’t say I am completely healed, because I know those feelings are more than capable of resurfacing. What I can say is that I no longer give them power—I choose to put my faith in God first. Moving forward I want to help those that also struggle quietly in the dark when no one sees. I know because I've been there, I bet you nine times out of ten that no knew I cried myself to sleep during those difficult nights. I often found myself reaching out to online crisis hubs just to feel some sense of relief. I understand the struggles of academic performance. Through my profession I will shed light to the grey areas surrounding mental health, because, sometimes it isn't about loud, visible struggles, but the silent ones that go unseen.

God has helped me in my lowest moments, and He continues to do so even now. He has never promised me an easy life, but He did promise to be with me through every step of the way. The summer after my 11th-grade year was the moment I started to take my relationship with the Lord seriously. Since then, he has been transforming me from the inside out. I know the work is far from finished, and I still have challenges to face. In June of 2024, I moved from Silver Spring to Bowie. This change shifted my entire life, from friends to environment. Initially, I was happy to move because I felt I didn't fit in with the friends I had at my previous school. However, my excitement quickly faded, and I had the worst 11th-grade year ever, even missing my old life at some point. Everything was terrible: my grades suffered, I was sleep-deprived, and I was extremely disorganized. Not to mention, my relationship with God was weak. I idolized everything else—grades, friends, popularity, working out—more than my own Father. It took a toll on my mental health, and I felt so discouraged with everything I did. If not for God, I wouldn't have made it through. The last two months of school, I lost all my friends, and it was just me and God. Over that summer, I learned that God is my first friend before anyone else. Throughout that summer, He made sure to drill that into my head, my world, and everything I am about. I would've thought that would make my life easier, but I was wrong. If anything, it only got more difficult. My senior year started rough; I'm still in it, but I've come a long way. My faith in God has taught me to rely on Him. In anything I do, I do for the glory of God. He is my world; He is my everything. My future career is to become a Psychiatrist, and I believe that if it is God's will, He will make it come to pass. My faith will definitely assist on my journey because, as a psychiatrist, I'll constantly be taking on the burdens of my clients to assist them mentally. My faith plays a huge role in this because we are all called to serve one another, following the example of Jesus when He washed the feet of His disciples. I want to serve others through my profession, and I believe God has me on the right path. Amen.