As someone who has loved Broadway musicals and Ariana Grande for most of my life, an obsession with Wicked came to me naturally. Growing up, I would listen to songs from Sweetener or Yours Truly whenever I felt sad or anxious, and since Ariana Grande’s music brought me such solace, she quickly became one of my inspirations. Ariana Grande’s music also happened to be my introduction to Wicked, as I remember being in third grade listening to “Popular Song,” a song from her debut album that sampled the melody of “Popular” from Wicked. Ever since then, Wicked has been my favorite Broadway musical and now, my favorite movie. When I watched Wicked for the first time, I immediately fell in love with the soundtrack. I found Elphaba’s story to be beautiful, inspiring me to stay true to myself and my beliefs regardless of what other people think of me. It also showed me the complexities and importance of friendship, as the relationship between Elphaba and Glinda showed me the impact that love can have on changing a person for good. Additionally, as someone with Tourette Syndrome who is usually the only person around with tics, Elphaba became a very relatable character to me. After seeing the scene where she came with a list of explanations for why she was green before anyone could ask, I felt seen and understood. I know what it is like for people to treat you like an anomaly for something you were born with. Wicked also gave me a sense of empowerment, and I began to appreciate the aspects of me that made me stand out in society. Seeing Cynthia Erivo represent Elphaba in the new movie adaptation made me feel even more visible, and it made Elphaba even more relatable to me. After years of feeling alienated and othered by the people around me, Wicked gave me a place to embrace and love everything about me that makes me different. I also believe that Wicked is important social commentary. The difficult choice that Glinda has to make between giving up her privilege and success for the greater good or joining Elphaba and having the world turn against her reflects on relevant real-life issues like oppression, propaganda, discrimination, and groupthink. Wicked will always have a special place in my heart; from the beautiful melodies and song lyrics to the elaborate costumes and creative set designs and deep themes of friendship, love, and social issues, Wicked has showed me that it is okay to be different, to find people who value you despite what others say, and to stand firm in believing in what’s right, even people are against you.

Early childhood trauma has significant impacts on children, extending throughout adolescence and adulthood, and oftentimes due to lack of awareness of childhood trauma, the effects of it are suppressed, shamed, or misunderstood by others. Persistent, severe trauma can often lead to mental health conditions later in life, such as PTSD, personality disorders, depression, and dissociative disorders. As a child, most of my friends and I grew up in unstable living situations and experienced food insecurity, as well as living with undiagnosed neurodevelopmental conditions, severe bullying, online grooming, and social isolation. Later on in middle school, I noticed that many of my friends who had gone through traumatic experiences just a few years earlier were experiencing suicidal thoughts, disordered eating, and self-harm. I myself became more socially withdrawn and felt a sense of alienation and also began to deal with mood swings, emotional dysregulation, and academic challenges due to an impaired ability to focus. Later on, I found comfort in art, poetry, and music, which helped my friends and I process our emotions better, but as I got older, I realized that many of these symptoms stemmed from childhood trauma, and recognized the connection between adverse childhood experiences and struggles with mental health later on as an adolescent. Children are incredibly susceptible to the environments they grew up in; a child who grew up impoverished without proper access to nutrition might have a strained relationship with eating later on, or children who were severely abused or neglected might, through no fault of their own, develop personality disorders and maladaptive mental defenses such as dissociation and repression as a way to cope with their trauma. Childhood trauma affects a child’s brain development by impairing future cognitive functions and creating an oversensitivity to stress and fear after being put through repeated traumatic situations. After going through such trauma, a child’s brain can be adapted to survive danger, over-activating the amygdala and leading to them perceiving mild situations as threatening or unsafe, or even as a reminder of their trauma. Many survivors of childhood trauma also suppress their emotions, struggle with low self-esteem and feelings of depression and worthlessness, and turn to self-destructive behaviors like substance use and self-harm. As a current psychology major, I plan to dedicate my career as a clinical child psychologist to researching and treating children’s mental health conditions, advocating for not only preventing childhood trauma altogether but also managing the symptoms and effects of it. I plan on helping children work through the trauma that they experienced and find safe ways to cope with what they have gone through, and I will prioritize educating parents and teachers on childhood trauma and knowing the signs of abuse, neglect, or otherwise unsafe or harmful situations a child might be living through. I will emphasize self-love, negating self-blame, and encouraging positive ways for children to deal with difficult emotions to reduce the chances of them turning to unhealthy coping mechanisms that my friends and I used to many years ago. Furthermore, I plan on working with children from disadvantaged backgrounds, as they often have less resources and access to mental health care despite being at a higher risk of experiencing childhood trauma. No child deserves to go through any kind of trauma; they need to be protected, safe, and loved, and survivors of childhood trauma deserve proper care, treatment, and advocacy to ensure positive and successful outcomes. Reflecting back on my 11 year old self and my friends who struggled with these kinds of issues, I hope to contribute to the creation of a better and safer future for children.

There is a capability for good in every person, and access to education that accommodates to one’s needs is a right that everyone deserves in order to wield that potential in full. In a world where no person is the same, it is important to create inclusive environments that support the needs of all children. As a person with a speech disorder and Tourette syndrome, I have not always had my needs met at school. Until my second year of high school, I never had any accommodations, and even when I received them, they were not always met. There are many students who need support in classrooms but are unable to receive it because the struggles that they face are often left unrecognized until adulthood. Because I have had such experiences, my plan is to make a meaningful change in my community by pursuing a career in neuropsychology. Attending speech therapy sparked my interest in child psychology, neuroscience, communication disorders, and pediatric medicine. My speech therapist demonstrated empathy, patience, and kindness to me. I remember being told to simply stop moving or stuttering by people who didn't understand Tourette syndrome or speech impairments, which discouraged me from my passion of performing poetry. My speech therapist was the one who gave me the confidence to perform in front of hundreds of people, leading to me winning first place in a poetry competition. That moment has had a lasting impact on me. I strive to make a difference in the lives of children in a similar way, which is why I am now choosing to study neuroscience and developmental psychology. I want to make neurological and mental health care more accessible for students and bring awareness to neurodevelopmental conditions to bring a better understanding of them. As a neuropsychologist, I would hope to validate people with developmental disabilities instead of shaming them, and create a comfortable, supportive, and uplifting environment. Throughout high school, I participated in healthcare internships and clubs, and began to take classes such as biology, psychology, and chemistry. Continuing my education is a necessity to me, as the field of neuropsychology requires extensive training. Alongside my education, I want to do research on communication disorders and how they can coexist with neurodevelopmental and psychological disorders, because many children are affected by this but their families lack the resources to address it. It is my goal to make a great difference in the lives of children the same way my speech therapist did, by ensuring that every child’s voice is heard and valued, regardless of what they sound or act like. I am fascinated by how speech and language is processed, and am eager to continue exploring the relationship between neurological conditions and child development.

Warm sunlight gently crept into the otherwise dark space underneath my elementary school playground’s slide. Over the sound of giggling children playing around our hidden area, I excitedly talked to my friend. Suddenly, he interrupted me with the most poisonous laugh I’d ever heard. “Speak normally.” That was not the last time I'd been told that. I would be corrected in front of my class while presenting, or even while introducing myself. Public speaking, and my view on talking overall, had always been a challenge for me. I’ve dealt with speech and communication issues since I first started talking, and between soft-speaking and stuttering, I was sure that my voice would never be heard. I preferred not to speak at all in public spaces, especially since whenever I did, I’d get comments on how monotonous I was, or how nervous I sounded. Despite this, I still hoped to perform poetry one day. I finally got to see a speech therapist when I was thirteen. She was wonderful; she would explain different speech disorders to me, and teach me strategies to make my words much clearer. She validated my interests in spoken word, reassuring that the way I sounded wouldn’t diminish what I needed to say; and most importantly, she told me that there was no shame in having a speech impediment. I gradually became more comfortable with my speech, beginning to accept it as a part of myself rather than a burden. After many sessions with my speech therapist, I finally had the confidence to read my poetry in front of hundreds of people. I am thankful for her words, not only for putting what I was once ashamed of into a positive light, but also for furthering my interest in speech pathology and pediatric medicine. I wanted to know more about communication disorders and children's health. It became my goal to make a great difference in the lives of children the same way my speech therapist did, by ensuring that every child’s voice is heard and valued, regardless of what they sound like. I am fascinated by how speech and language is processed, and am eager to continue exploring the relationship between communication disorders and child development. I am motivated by my hope to create a space where children are never asked to "speak normally," and can confidently express themselves, because there is no wrong way to speak.