College has always been a part of my plan. I knew I wanted to go to a university And get a bachelors in psychology to hopefully help educate the younger generations on mental health and how to effectively cope. The reason for this has always been family. Me and my sisters never really knew how to talk about our emotions and what to do with our emotions. Not to point fingers but I blame my parents for this. I love my parents and thank them for all the sacrifices they had made for me and my sisters but we did not always know what to do with our emotions. It was difficult to talk to my parents about my emotions and they never seemed to understand or made me feel as if my problems were nothing. I was often told there was nothing to be sad about when I had a home, food, clothes, education, etc. This caused me to feel guilty about my problems and that I had no reason to be sad or upset. Half of the time in elementary school I didn't even know what I was feeling and dealing with my fathers alcoholism at home only made my internal emotions worse. I had never even heard the words “mental health” until middle school. I had no idea That there are people like me who had similar struggles and to no surprise they all looked like me, Young hispanics. After talking to more of these kids and finding out that we were all told at one time or another that there was nothing to be sad about or that mental health was not real, it completely altered our way of living. Ever since then I have been fascinated about the stigma of mental health within the hispanic community. There are existing challenges in addressing mental health within the Hispanic community. Mental health concerns go unnoticed and young individuals are often compelled to adopt a “toughen up” mentality, with little recognition or understanding of the complexities involved in emotional well-being. My long-term goal is to use my psychology education to address pressing issues within the Hispanic community regarding mental health. I am deeply committed to promoting mental health education among young adults and children, with a strong belief in the transformative impact it could have had on my own life and of my peers if we had been equipped with knowledge and accessible support about mental health during our formative years. Every day of my life I wish I had known that it was okay to ask for help and just having a knowledge of what mental health is would have helped me tremendously. I want to be part of helping people get better, be happier, and live a healthier lifestyle. I would love nothing more than to help individuals in Hispanic communities and to educate the younger generations on how to express their emotions and understand it’s okay to feel the way that you do. We live in a world where our parents have gone through so much and have sacrificed a lot for us that it makes our problems look small and unimportant when in reality they are important. Majoring in psychology has always been an interest of mine and using that knowledge to be a tool to my community and create a healthier standard within the Hispanic community has always been a goal of mine.

Within my High school career I have been part of our PAL program at school which works to end bullying K-12th grade but also promotes mental health resources. I believe this program has done some amazing changes within my school but there is still a lacking concept and I believe that it is mens mental health advocacy. Reaching out to the male audience can really change our outcome and how people interact with our program and create a bigger stage for mental health and anti-bullying campaigns. I have been involved in an anti-bullying puppet show for elementary schools and also sessions at middle schools. I have always been interested within mental health and recently I have Grown an interest in mens mental health. Unfortunately my father was a victim to alcohol abuse. There were things I witnessed at a young age that made me want to hate him. I wanted to hate him for drinking. I wanted to hate him for making me and my sisters suffer. I wanted to hate him for all the emotional stress he put me through but I just couldn’t. He was my dad and I loved him. I hated to see that he was hurting and felt that alcohol was his only way out. I don’t think my dad was a raging alcoholic, I just think he was a man that did not know how to take care of his mental health. I saw my father struggle with his mental health and not even accept he has Mental health issues and sadly I think many men around the world are facing the same issues. Thinking about my father led me to question “if my father had mental health Resources, would he still have been an alcoholic?” This question tripped me up for days because it could have changed the whole trajectory of his life but also my life in a positive way. This led me to think about the boys at my school and how they cope or react to mental health and when speaking to close friends of mine there is this fear of mental health and seeking out help. I intend to streamline mens mental health by starting at the elementary level But also getting families involved. Schools constantly want parents to be involved for academic success but what about mental health progress. Showing parents possible mental health symptoms and helping talk at home or even showing parents that there are resources can help a lot. Also just putting more funding towards mental health that can make it accessible to everyone. My passion for mental health stems from a personal desire to break the cycle of silence and suffering. As a future mental health professional, I envision myself bridging the gap between awareness and accessible treatment. My goal is to create a system where seeking help feels empowering, not shameful. Only then can we truly break the cycle of bullying and empower young men to navigate life's challenges with the support they deserve.

My Fathers alcoholism has always had a presence in my household. My mom made me promise to keep my father’s alcoholism a secret, causing me to feel as if my family was imperfect and believing no one was experiencing similar challenges within the walls of their homes. During my sophomore year of high school, I could feel myself starting to tank. I was feeling discouraged with everything going on at home that the discouragement was starting to seep into my academic motivations. My routine became a poor reflection of who I was as a student. I began to fall into the habit of procrastination, excessive sleeping, and failure to participate in class. It was hard for me to find the courage to face my father's alcoholism, but as my family continued to support him, this allowed me to prioritize my growth as an individual. I turned to programs at school like band and PALS as a “safe space.” These programs not only helped me work on my mental health and well-being but also helped me strengthen my leadership characteristics. I started to use what I was learning to help deal with issues at home. I used that knowledge to strive for my personal goals and started to see myself transform into the strong independent woman I knew I could be. In recent times, there has been a significant shift in how people view mental health. A topic that was neglected is now being put at the forefront of many organizations and educational institutions. I believe there is nothing more important than understanding yourself and others. Especially in the Hispanic community, there is a big avoidance of mental health. You are often told to toughen up or that there is nothing to be sad about. It’s frowned upon to cry or to feel any emotion other than happiness. Similar to many Hispanic kids my age, I was never really taught how to effectively communicate my feelings, and that negatively impacted me for a long time. Every day I wish I had known that it was okay to ask for help and just having a knowledge of what mental health is would have helped me tremendously. I want to be part of helping people get better, be happier, and live a healthier lifestyle. I would love nothing more than to help individuals in Hispanic communities and to educate the younger generations on how to express their emotions and understand it’s okay to feel the way that you do. We live in a world where our parents have gone through so much and have sacrificed a lot for us that it makes our problems look small and unimportant when in reality they are important. Majoring in psychology and getting a minor in Neuroscience has always been an interest of mine. Our brain is so complex and learning the connection with mind, body and spirit will be a pivotal tool to my community and create a healthier standard within the Hispanic community.

My Fathers alcoholism has always had a presence in my household. My mom made me promise to keep my father’s alcoholism a secret, causing me to feel as if my family was imperfect and believing no one was experiencing similar challenges within the walls of their homes. During my sophomore year of high school, I could feel myself starting to tank. I was feeling discouraged with everything going on at home that the discouragement was starting to seep into my academic motivations. My routine became a poor reflection of who I was as a student. It was hard for me to find the courage to face my father's alcoholism, but as my family continued to support him, this allowed me to prioritize my growth as an individual. I turned to programs at school like band and PALS as a “safe space.” These programs not only helped me work on my mental health and well-being but also helped me strengthen my leadership characteristics. I used what I was learning to help deal with issues at home. I used that knowledge to strive for my personal goals and started to see myself transform into the strong independent woman I knew I could be. I’m truly grateful to the band program for giving me a much-needed change of scene from home and the unwavering support provided during challenging times. There were days I walked into the band hall, allowing myself a precious hour to simply breathe and forget about my worries. On tough days, being with my peers and creating music provided relief for me. Not only was I able to find a happy ambiance in the band, but I learned a lot about communication and using my voice. Leadership was highly valued in the band which made the placement process extremely competitive. Despite initially lacking authority and having a weak voice, I secured an instructional leadership position during my second audition. The skills I used not only became pivotal but also transformative in influencing the way I communicated with others across all aspects of my life. I became confident in my voice allowing me to speak with my dad and express the pain he was causing me. Our communication became stronger which allowed our relationship to shift into a place of peace. Around the same time, I discovered the PALS program at school. Instantly, I recognized it as a program I wanted to be part of, believing that it held the potential for significant personal growth and learning.nPALS taught me the importance of listening skills, communication, and overall being a good human. Understanding the external facets of active listening emerged as one of the most vital skills I learned, significantly improving the effectiveness of my communication. PALS helped me understand personal emotions, allowing me to share my feelings without feeling ashamed. This made talking about my father and other conflicts a lot more manageable. Band not only allowed me to escape from reality into a world of music but also built lasting friendships and valuable life skills. These skills later proved to be crucial in assisting me with the complexities of my family situation. In similarity, the PALS program introduced me to a realm of support and understanding that I had never experienced before. I acquired the essential tools for effective communication, and was offered peers who provided emotional support when dealing with the emotional challenges from my father's alcoholism. Involvement in programs like band and PALS has played a crucial role in nurturing my personal growth and resilience, especially in the context of coping with my father’s struggle with alcoholism.

My father always took great care of me and made it his priority to keep me happy and safe. I value my relationship with my father and look up to him for the amount of sacrifices he has made for me. Unfortunately my father was a victim to alcohol abuse. There were things I witnessed at a young age that made me want to hate him. I wanted to hate him for drinking. I wanted to hate him for making me and my sisters suffer. I wanted to hate him for all the emotional stress he put me through but I just couldn’t. He was my dad and I loved him. I hated to see that he was hurting and felt that alcohol was his only way out. Growing up in a hispanic community I had no clue what mental health was. Both my parents lacked the ability to express their emotions and to teach me and my sisters the importance of mental health and the different ways of coping. I noticed this with a lot of my peers in school. mental health was not acknowledged at home so it is not surprising many turned to negative coping methods. I don’t think my dad was a raging alcoholic, I just think he was a man that did not know how to take care of his mental health. I saw my father struggle with his mental health and not even accept he has Mental health issues. My father grew up with little to no money, did not finish high school, had to leave his family, immigrated to America alone and had to grieve the loss of his closest brother. There is no doubt he has struggles with mental health. My father has gone through a lot and the emotional challenges were some battles he couldn’t win leading him to turn to alcohol. My father has really impacted my life by opening my view about mental health. I was really fascinated about the importance of mental health. And wondered “If my father received the resources about mental health at a young age would he be an alcoholic?” I want to be part of helping people get better, be happier, and live a healthier lifestyle. I would love nothing more than to help individuals in Hispanic communities and to educate the younger generations on how to express their emotions and understand it’s okay to feel the way that you do. We live in a world where our parents have gone through so much and have sacrificed a lot for us that it makes our problems look small and unimportant when in reality they are important. Majoring in psychology has always been an interest of mine and using that knowledge to be a tool to my community and create a healthier standard within the Hispanic community has always been a goal of mine and I know this can be accomplished. My father motivates me to ensure that other had the resources and help that he did not have at a young age.

My father took care of me and always made it his priority to keep me happy and safe. I value my relationship with my father and look up to him for the amount of sacrifices he has made for me. Unfortunately my father was a victim to alcohol abuse. There were things I witnessed at a young age that made me want to hate him. I wanted to hate him for drinking. I wanted to hate him for making me and my sisters suffer. I wanted to hate him for all the emotional stress he put me through but I just couldn’t. He was my dad and I loved him. I hated to see that he was hurting and felt that alcohol was his only way out. Growing up in a hispanic community I had no clue what mental health was. Both my parents lacked the ability to express their emotions and to teach me and my sisters the importance of mental health and the different ways of coping. I noticed this with a lot of my peers in school. mental health was not acknowledged at home so it is not surprising many turned to negative coping methods. I don’t think my dad was a raging alcoholic, I just think he was a man that did not know how to take care of his mental health. I saw my father struggle with his mental health and not even accept he has Mental health issues. My father grew up with little to no money, did not finish high school, had to leave his family, immigrated to america alone and had to grieve the loss of his closest brother. There is no doubt he has struggles with mental health. My father has gone through a lot and the emotional challenges were some battles he couldn’t win leading him to turn to alcohol. My father has really impacted my life by opening my view about mental health. I was really fascinated about the importance of mental health. And wondered “If my father received the resources about mental health at a young age would he be an alcoholic?” I want to be part of helping people get better, be happier, and live a healthier lifestyle. I would love nothing more than to help individuals in Hispanic communities and to educate the younger generations on how to express their emotions and understand it’s okay to feel the way that you do. We live in a world where our parents have gone through so much and have sacrificed a lot for us that it makes our problems look small and unimportant when in reality they are important. Majoring in psychology has always been an interest of mine and using that knowledge to be a tool to my community and create a healthier standard within the Hispanic community has always been a goal of mine and I know this can be accomplished.