Thalassophobia, otherwise known as the fear of the ocean. It is the existential dread that our minuscule human bodies are unequipped to handle the overwhelming capacity of the sea. The fear of the massively uncharted depths and unending stretches of the ocean. Far beyond the limpid shores, the deeper you venture down into the ocean, the light spectrum shifts, and our human eyes can no longer perceive the opaque lower depths. Within the deep, there exist unfathomable monsters, with freakish appearances. Able to withstand the intense pressure and navigate the absence of light in the aphotic zone, the lack of knowledge of these monstrosities frightens some. Two years ago, as I was hastily yanked to the bottom of the ocean, I briefly recalled thalassophobia. As I sank deeper into the grimness of the murky brine, I lost the willpower to fight the leviathan of the deep. It is the skewed vision and indiscernible path forward in a pitch-black sea of abyssal nothingness, that froze me in fear. It is the notion that only misfortune and sorrow lurk within that deep, inescapable blankness. It is depression, otherwise known as the fear of hope. During my sophomore year, this leviathan of misfortune obliterated everything that impassioned me, claiming my willful spirit in the process. As the sea beast rapidly ingested everything, I wallowed in my misfortune, hoping eventually a gallant knight would rescue me, like in fairy tales. The longer the torment went on, the weaker my resistance became. Two years later, as I tread peacefully at the surface of calm, transparent waters, I understand how much I’ve truly risen since then, and that unruly monster inside of me has dissolved. The epiphany I reached after introspectively examining myself was cathartic. My depression was not a bloodthirsty leviathan, but a flawed and fragile serpent that prowled the deepest trenches inside of me, frantically looking back at the joys of the past in desperate reminiscence, begging for someone to help. That someone would not be a valiant adventurer, it would be me. It had to be me. I knew I had to begin intently, so I determinedly threw myself into researching depression. The only way out of this was a holistic approach; healing my mind and caring for my body. I found that a common approach to dealing with depression was speaking with a therapist. I informed my mom, and she promptly led the surge. This was the turning point during my battle, and it allowed me to empty the overabundance of negative thoughts into a healthy outlet. With a healing mind, I was able to find the motivation to heal my body, going back to soccer, the sport that brought me great joy that I’d forgotten. I continued to grasp more comforts that I’d lost, and slowly, I began to emerge, taming the fragile beast and vanquishing it back to its home in the abyssal depths. Today, I tread blissfully in the shallower waters of my mind's ocean. Most notably, I’ve learned about the resilience of my spirit, and if I ever begin sinking into my mind again, I will not allow myself to be setback or damaged. I will prevail. She is a triumphant fighter, who endlessly strives forward, competing with her of yesterday to become stronger and more empowered each day. She is unyielding, striving to prove to any lingering remnants of that once commanding leviathan; like to the tides that never stop rolling, and the waves that never still, she can be tempestuous and sullen, but she can also be mighty and relentless. She is me; and from my troughs to my peaks, life is an unpredictable ocean, and I’ve now learned how to swim. Since struggling with depression, I've come to understand that I'm not "cured", but it still impacts so much of who I am. I find that I'm more confident in myself now, and sure of what I want. When I form relationships with others I'm very bluntly clear about my needs as someone who suffers from mental health disorders. Also, I've noticed that instead of assuming the worst of the people who enter my life, I'm keener to allow them to introduce themselves and open up to me first. Although I struggled throughout my fight with depression, I believe that it helped shape who I am today and how I view the world around me.

Thalassophobia, otherwise known as the fear of the ocean. It is the existential dread that our minuscule human bodies are unequipped to handle the overwhelming capacity of the sea. The fear of the massively uncharted depths and unending stretches of the ocean. Two years ago, as I was hastily yanked to the bottom of the ocean, I briefly recalled thalassophobia. As I sank deeper into the grimness of the murky brine, I lost the willpower to fight the leviathan of the deep. It is the skewed vision and indiscernible path forward in a pitch-black sea of abyssal nothingness, that froze me in fear. It is the notion that only misfortune and sorrow lurk within that deep, inescapable blankness. It is depression, otherwise known as the fear of hope. During my sophomore year, this leviathan of misfortune obliterated everything that impassioned me, claiming my willful spirit in the process. As the sea beast rapidly ingested everything, I wallowed in my misfortune, hoping eventually a gallant knight would rescue me, like in fairy tales. The longer the torment went on, the weaker my resistance became. Two years later, as I tread peacefully at the surface of calm, transparent waters, I understand how much I’ve truly risen since then, and that unruly monster inside of me has dissolved. The epiphany I reached after introspectively examining myself was cathartic. My depression was not a bloodthirsty leviathan, but a flawed and fragile serpent that prowled the deepest trenches inside of me, frantically looking back at the joys of the past in desperate reminiscence, begging for someone to help. That someone would not be a valiant adventurer, it would be me. It had to be me. I knew I had to begin intently, so I determinedly threw myself into researching depression. The only way out of this was a holistic approach; healing my mind and caring for my body. I found that a common approach to dealing with depression was speaking with a therapist. I informed my mom, and she promptly led the surge. This was the turning point during my battle, and it allowed me to empty the overabundance of negative thoughts into a healthy outlet. With a healing mind, I was able to find the motivation to heal my body, going back to soccer, the sport that brought me great joy that I’d forgotten. I continued to grasp more comforts that I’d lost, and slowly, I began to emerge, taming the fragile beast and vanquishing it back to its home in the abyssal depths. Today, I tread blissfully in the shallower waters of my mind's ocean. Most notably, I’ve learned about the resilience of my spirit, and if I ever begin sinking into my mind again, I will not allow myself to be setback or damaged. I will prevail. She is a triumphant fighter, who endlessly strives forward, competing with her of yesterday to become stronger and more empowered each day. She is unyielding, striving to prove to any lingering remnants of that once commanding leviathan; like the tides, that never stop rolling, and the waves that never still, she can be tempestuous and sullen, but she can also be mighty and relentless. She is me; and from my troughs to my peaks, life is an unpredictable ocean, and I’ve now learned how to swim.

Depression, otherwise known as the fear of hope. During my sophomore year, it obliterated everything that impassioned me, claiming my willful spirit in the process. I wallowed in my misfortune, hoping eventually a gallant knight would rescue me, like in fairy tales. The longer the torment went on, the weaker my resistance became. Two years later, as I peacefully recall my battle, I understand how much I’ve truly risen since then, and how much that unruly side of me has dissolved. The epiphany I reached after introspectively examining myself was cathartic. My depression was a flawed and fragile version of me that prowled the deepest trenches inside of me, frantically looking back at the joys of the past in desperate reminiscence. That someone would not be a valiant adventurer, it would be me. I knew I had to begin intently, so I determinedly threw myself into researching depression. The only way out of this was a holistic approach; healing my mind and caring for my body. I found that a common approach to dealing with depression was speaking with a therapist. I informed my mom, and she promptly led the surge. This was the turning point during my battle, and it allowed me to empty the overabundance of negative thoughts into a healthy outlet. With a healing mind, I was able to find the motivation to heal my body, going back to soccer, the sport that brought me great joy that I’d forgotten. I continued to regain more comforts that I’d lost, and slowly, I began to emerge. Most notably, I’ve learned about the resilience of my spirit, and if I ever begin sinking into my mind again, I will not allow myself to be a setback or damaged. For college, I’ll be attending UW-Whitewater to receive my undergraduate degree. After that, I plan to start working at a local Veterinary Clinic as a veterinary assistant. During that time, I’d like to work towards attending Veterinary School afterward to attain my Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. To further my education and credentials, I’d then like to strive to attend Tuskegee’s College of Veterinary Medicine to receive my D.V.M, then, return to Racine to hopefully work at the same Vet Clinic that I would’ve been an assistant at. It’s important to me that the talent and skills I learn wherever I study can be brought back to the community that raised me. I believe people who helped me grow into the individual I am today should directly benefit from the services I’ll be able to provide in the future. Going to college is extremely important to me for this reason because, with little education, I can only give so much of myself to my community. I’m set on furthering my education as far as I can so that I can have the most fulfilling career possible, and fulfill the people who will benefit from my career too. While in school, I hope to learn a lot about life sciences, but I’d also like to learn things about DNA and genetics. I’m interested in being a veterinarian, but I have a lot of interest in biology, so I’ve considered minoring in criminology or forensic studies. In the future, I aim to be someone who others look up to for my intelligence and prowess, so I plan to put in the work to perhaps be that figure to someone who may be struggling just like I once did.

Thalassophobia, otherwise known as the fear of the ocean. It is the existential dread that our minuscule human bodies are unequipped to handle the overwhelming capacity of the sea. The fear of the massively uncharted depths and unending stretches of the ocean. Two years ago, as I was hastily yanked to the bottom of the ocean, I briefly recalled thalassophobia. As I sank deeper into the grimness of the murky brine, I lost the willpower to fight the leviathan of the deep. It is the skewed vision and indiscernible path forward in a pitch-black sea of abyssal nothingness, that froze me in fear. It is the notion that only misfortune and sorrow lurk within that deep, inescapable blankness. It is depression, otherwise known as the fear of hope. During my sophomore year, this leviathan of misfortune obliterated everything that impassioned me, claiming my willful spirit in the process. As the sea beast rapidly ingested everything, I wallowed in my misfortune, hoping eventually a gallant knight would rescue me, like in fairy tales. The longer the torment went on, the weaker my resistance became. Two years later, as I tread peacefully at the surface of calm, transparent waters, I understand how much I’ve truly risen since then, and that unruly monster inside of me has dissolved. The epiphany I reached after introspectively examining myself was cathartic. My depression was not a bloodthirsty leviathan, but a flawed and fragile serpent that prowled the deepest trenches inside of me, frantically looking back at the joys of the past in desperate reminiscence, begging for someone to help. That someone would not be a valiant adventurer, it would be me. It had to be me. I knew I had to begin intently, so I determinedly threw myself into researching depression. The only way out of this was a holistic approach; healing my mind and caring for my body. I found that a common approach to dealing with depression was speaking with a therapist. I informed my mom, and she promptly led the surge. This was the turning point during my battle, and it allowed me to empty the overabundance of negative thoughts into a healthy outlet. With a healing mind, I was able to find the motivation to heal my body, going back to soccer, the sport that brought me great joy that I’d forgotten. I continued to grasp more comforts that I’d lost, and slowly, I began to emerge, taming the fragile beast and vanquishing it back to its home in the abyssal depths. Today, I tread blissfully in the shallower waters of my mind's ocean. Most notably, I’ve learned about the resilience of my spirit, and if I ever begin sinking into my mind again, I will not allow myself to be setback or damaged. I will prevail. She is a triumphant fighter, who endlessly strives forward, competing with her of yesterday to become stronger and more empowered each day. She is unyielding, striving to prove to any lingering remnants of that once commanding leviathan; like the tides, that never stop rolling, and the waves that never still, she can be tempestuous and sullen, but she can also be mighty and relentless. She is me; and from my troughs to my peaks, life is an unpredictable ocean, and I’ve now learned how to swim.

My education goal is to attend a 4-year university and receive my bachelor's degree in biology. My dream university would be UW-Madison, but I’ve been accepted to my second choice UW-Whitewater, so I will most likely attend there to receive my undergraduate degree. After that, I plan to start working at a local Veterinary Clinic as a veterinary assistant. During that time, I’d like to work towards attending Veterinary School afterward to attain my Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. To further my education and credentials, I’d then like to strive to attend Tuskegee’s College of Veterinary Medicine to receive my D.V.M, then, return to Racine to hopefully work at the same Vet Clinic that I would’ve been an assistant at. It’s important to me that the talent and skills I learn wherever I study can be brought back to the community that raised me. I believe people who helped me grow into the individual I am today should directly benefit from the services I’ll be able to provide in the future. Going to college is extremely important to me for this reason because, with little education, I can only give so much of myself to my community. I’m set on furthering my education as far as I can so that I can have the most fulfilling career possible, and fulfill the people who will benefit from my career too. While in school, I hope to learn a lot about life sciences, but I’d also like to learn things about DNA and genetics. I’m interested in being a veterinarian, but I have a lot of interest in biology, so I’ve considered minoring in criminology or forensic studies. If I ever stray from wanting to be a Veterinarian, then I’d consider pursuing DNA Analysis, as it’s something I learned I enjoyed while taking the Biomedical and Human Body Systems courses offered at my school. Depression, otherwise known as the fear of hope. During my sophomore year, it obliterated everything that impassioned me, claiming my willful spirit in the process. I wallowed in my misfortune, hoping eventually a gallant knight would rescue me, like in fairy tales. The longer the torment went on, the weaker my resistance became. Two years later, as I peacefully recall my battle, I understand how much I’ve truly risen since then, and how much that unruly side of me has dissolved. The epiphany I reached after introspectively examining myself was cathartic. My depression was a flawed and fragile version of me that prowled the deepest trenches inside of me, frantically looking back at the joys of the past in desperate reminiscence. That someone would not be a valiant adventurer, it would be me. I knew I had to begin intently, so I determinedly threw myself into researching depression. The only way out of this was a holistic approach; healing my mind and caring for my body. I found that a common approach to dealing with depression was speaking with a therapist. I informed my mom, and she promptly led the surge. This was the turning point during my battle, and it allowed me to empty the overabundance of negative thoughts into a healthy outlet. With a healing mind, I was able to find the motivation to heal my body, going back to soccer, the sport that brought me great joy that I’d forgotten. I continued to regain more comforts that I’d lost, and slowly, I began to emerge. Most notably, I’ve learned about the resilience of my spirit, and if I ever begin sinking into my mind again, I will not allow myself to be a setback or damaged.