Since the age of seven, gymnastics never truly felt just like a sport to me; it was a safe space I felt I could go to. Almost every day after school I would head straight to the gym, where my life felt completely different. Arriving at gymnastics gave me comfort. I knew I was good at something; I didn't just have friends, I had a family. Gymnastics became my safe place where I felt understood. Outside of gymnastics, I never really had good connections with others, I struggled to make friends and felt extremely lonely, but as soon as I got to gymnastics everything changed. The bars, beam, vault, and floor were where I found strength and confidence. It truly became my happy place. I had many friends in gymnastics because we all had one thing in common: our love for the sport. We never judged each other and we were a strong team always rooting for each other and ensuring to keep each other's spirits up. Later, I eventually stopped doing gymnastics, switching over to dance but still using what I learned in gymnastics to improve at dance. After I quit gymnastics I entered high school which is when my mental health got really bad, I was in a state of depression where I felt as if I was sinking into a dark hole of emptiness. I didn't want to be alive and even attempted to take my own life. I felt like no one in my school liked me, especially since it was an all girls school with only 20 girls in my grade. I barely talked to anyone, even my parents and barely ate. I felt not just sad, but empty. I realized I couldn't let myself feel this way for long and I needed to try new things. I tried basketball and dance and joined other organizations which did bring me happiness, but nothing like gymnastics did. Gymnastics was a significant part of my life and I knew I wanted to give back to others with gymnastics. Now I am a gymnastics coach which has brought me happiness not only because of the love of the sport, but the happiness I see in kids when they are learning gymnastics. I make gymnastics a safe space just like gymnastics was a safe space for me. My goal as a coach is not only to teach them skills, but to make sure these girls are strong and valuable. I know I have reached that goal when girls have called my favorite coach, do little things for me and get promoted to becoming a team coach! Gymnastics shaped me into the person I am and I hope to pass on my safe space and the knowledge I gained from it to other young girls.

The career that I am most interested in is becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner. This career is a professional and personal goal of mine. The reason that this career became so interesting to me is because of an ACL injury I went through that taught me how intricate the functions of the bones and tendons are as they work together to form the structure of the human body. This injury shaped my viewpoint on healthcare showing me that there is a high need for people in the orthopedic field. Orthopedic nurse practitioners are crucial when diagnosing and treating injuries or conditions. These types of nurses are there for patients throughout recovery and provide essential care that orthopedic surgeons cannot because of their high demand. When I become a nurse practitioner I want to ensure that all patients get the care they so greatly need. Because of my personal experience it has given me a deep understanding of what patients undergo and I am committed to making sure I make a positive impact on their lives. In my career I plan to come up with innovations that can help improve the efficiency of patient care. The way I plan to do this is by making sure that not only patients' injury is treated but also their emotional health. I believe that people need to have a positive attitude to go through recovery because if that urge to go to physical therapy and doctor appointments isn't there these people will most likely have a difficult recovery. I myself have felt this way. When I went through my ACL injury a couple of months ago it put me through a state of depression because it was my senior year of highschool and my last time dancing on the dance team. I had to learn to accept all of these casualties and preserve them. Because of this I plan to make sure every patient feels that they are important, understood and heard. In addition I plan to advocate for more people to join the orthopedic healthcare field by sharing my knowledge and my own experiences and if possible the experiences of others. As I enter my journey of becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner there is a driven desire to make sure every patient gets the attention and help that they deserve. I hope to make a meaningful difference in others with my own experiences. The challenges I have undergone have given me determination to improve the healthcare system. I hope to be able to continue my learning and make a positive impact in the world.

The career that I am most interested in is becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner. This career is a professional and personal goal of mine. The reason that this career became so interesting to me is because of an ACL injury I went through that taught me how intricate the functions of the bones and tendons are as they work together to form the structure of the human body. This injury shaped my viewpoint on healthcare showing me that there is a high need for people in the orthopedic field. Orthopedic nurse practitioners are crucial when diagnosing and treating injuries or conditions. These types of nurses are there for patients throughout recovery and provide essential care that orthopedic surgeons cannot because of their high demand. When I become a nurse practitioner I want to ensure that all patients get the care they so greatly need. Because of my personal experience it has given me a deep understanding of what patients undergo and I am committed to making sure I make a positive impact on their lives. In my career I plan to come up with innovations that can help improve the efficiency of patient care. The way I plan to do this is by making sure that not only patients' injury is treated but also their emotional health. I believe that people need to have a positive attitude to go through recovery because if that urge to go to physical therapy and doctor appointments isn't there these people will most likely have a difficult recovery. I myself have felt this way. When I went through my ACL injury a couple of months ago it put me through a state of depression because it was my senior year of highschool and my last time dancing on the dance team. I had to learn to accept all of these casualties and preserve them. Because of this I plan to make sure every patient feels that they are important, understood and heard. In addition I plan to advocate for more people to join the orthopedic healthcare field by sharing my knowledge and my own experiences and if possible the experiences of others. As I enter my journey of becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner there is a driven desire to make sure every patient gets the attention and help that they deserve. I hope to make a meaningful difference in others with my own experiences. The challenges I have undergone have given me determination to improve the healthcare system. I hope to be able to continue my learning and make a positive impact in the world.

The career that I am most interested in is becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner. This career is a professional and personal goal of mine. The reason that this career became so interesting to me is because of an ACL injury I went through that taught me how intricate the functions of the bones and tendons are as they work together to form the structure of the human body. This injury shaped my viewpoint on healthcare showing me that there is a high need for people in the orthopedic field. Orthopedic nurse practitioners are crucial when diagnosing and treating injuries or conditions. These types of nurses are there for patients throughout recovery and provide essential care that orthopedic surgeons cannot because of their high demand. When I become a nurse practitioner I want to ensure that all patients get the care they so greatly need. Because of my personal experience it has given me a deep understanding of what patients undergo and I am committed to making sure I make a positive impact on their lives. In my career I plan to come up with innovations that can help improve the efficiency of patient care. The way I plan to do this is by making sure that not only patients' injury is treated but also their emotional health. I believe that people need to have a positive attitude to go through recovery because if that urge to go to physical therapy and doctor appointments isn't there these people will most likely have a difficult recovery. I myself have felt this way. When I went through my ACL injury a couple of months ago it put me through a state of depression because it was my senior year of highschool and my last time dancing on the dance team. I had to learn to accept all of these casualties and preserve them. Because of this I plan to make sure every patient feels that they are important, understood and heard. In addition I plan to advocate for more people to join the orthopedic healthcare field by sharing my knowledge and my own experiences and if possible the experiences of others. As I enter my journey of becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner there is a driven desire to make sure every patient gets the attention and help that they deserve. I hope to make a meaningful difference in others with my own experiences. The challenges I have undergone have given me determination to improve the healthcare system. I hope to be able to continue my learning and make a positive impact in the world.

The career that I am most interested in is becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner. This career is a professional and personal goal of mine. The reason that this career became so interesting to me is because of an ACL injury I went through that taught me how intricate the functions of the bones and tendons are as they work together to form the structure of the human body. This injury shaped my viewpoint on healthcare showing me that there is a high need for people in the orthopedic field. Orthopedic nurse practitioners are crucial when diagnosing and treating injuries or conditions. These types of nurses are there for patients throughout recovery and provide essential care that orthopedic surgeons cannot because of their high demand. When I become a nurse practitioner I want to ensure that all patients get the care they so greatly need. Because of my personal experience it has given me a deep understanding of what patients undergo and I am committed to making sure I make a positive impact on their lives. In my career I plan to come up with innovations that can help improve the efficiency of patient care. The way I plan to do this is by making sure that not only patients' injury is treated but also their emotional health. I believe that people need to have a positive attitude to go through recovery because if that urge to go to physical therapy and doctor appointments isn't there these people will most likely have a difficult recovery. I myself have felt this way. When I went through my ACL injury a couple of months ago it put me through a state of depression because it was my senior year of highschool and my last time dancing on the dance team. I had to learn to accept all of these casualties and preserve them. Because of this I plan to make sure every patient feels that they are important, understood and heard. In addition I plan to advocate for more people to join the orthopedic healthcare field by sharing my knowledge and my own experiences and if possible the experiences of others. As I enter my journey of becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner there is a driven desire to make sure every patient gets the attention and help that they deserve. I hope to make a meaningful difference in others with my own experiences. The challenges I have undergone have given me determination to improve the healthcare system. I hope to be able to continue my learning and make a positive impact in the world.

My name is Carolina, and I am passionate about becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner. The reason I want to pursue a career in this field is because of my personal experiences with injury and being neglected by doctors. I have been hurt for weeks and unable to get a clear answer of what has happened to my body, for this reason it has created a desire to make sure that others don't go through the same situations that I am going through. When I become a nurse practitioner I believe that I can use my own experiences to significantly improve the medical field and insure that everyone gets the medical attention that they deserve. In addition,I am also a dancer, being a dancer has taught me many different skills that are needed to pursue my medical career. Dancing has taught me time management skills and endurance when going through hours of long training while still balancing my academics, to be able to balance both of these it requires rigorous planning and discipline. The ability to balance dance and school will be crucial in the medical field where I would have to prioritize patients and my personal life. I’ve also learned leadership in dance, by teaching choreography to my other dance members or helping my coach coach our middle school team. I have become the president of the Dance honor society which exemplifies my ability to take action in leading others. These skills will help me effectively work with other healthcare members and patients' families. Good communication will help guide patients in a positive manner as they undergo recovery. Dance has taught me the importance of staying active and healthy. Being fit and knowing how the body works are crucial for dance and orthopedic healthcare. My personal experience with dance injuries has made me understand the physical and emotional challenges that patients face. I lost a once in a lifetime opportunity to go to an out of town dance event because of an injury and I personally know it hurts not being able to do something you love. That is why I want to ensure that all patients are able to continue doing what they love. Ever since I got hurt my career in orthopedics has been confirmed and my goal is to use my personal experiences to make sure no one gets neglected or unheard because their injury has something to do with a bone or a ligament. Every injury should receive the same urgent medical attention and not be put off because it doesn't look major. To conclude, my desire to become an orthopedic nurse practitioner is sparked by my personal experiences with being hurt and overlooked by doctors. I’ved learned many skills in dance and plan to use them in my medical career. My experiences have shaped my character and given me a new perspective on how patients feel and how medicine is like. I am dedicated to making a difference in the medical field ensuring that every injured patient receives the medical attention they deserve.

My name is Carolina, and I am passionate about becoming an orthopedic nurse practitioner. The reason I want to pursue a career in this field is because of my personal experiences with injury and being neglected by doctors. I have been hurt for weeks and unable to get a clear answer of what has happened to my body, for this reason it has created a desire to make sure that others don't go through the same situations that I am going through. When I become a nurse practitioner I believe that I can use my own experiences to significantly improve the medical field and insure that everyone gets the medical attention that they deserve. In addition,I am also a dancer, being a dancer has taught me many different skills that are needed to pursue my medical career. Dancing has taught me time management skills and endurance when going through hours of long training while still balancing my academics, to be able to balance both of these it requires rigorous planning and discipline. The ability to balance dance and school will be crucial in the medical field where I would have to prioritize patients and my personal life. I’ve also learned leadership in dance, by teaching choreography to my other dance members or helping my coach coach our middle school team. I have become the president of the Dance honor society which exemplifies my ability to take action in leading others. These skills will help me effectively work with other healthcare members and patients' families. Good communication will help guide patients in a positive manner as they undergo recovery. Dance has taught me the importance of staying active and healthy. Being fit and knowing how the body works are crucial for dance and orthopedic healthcare. My personal experience with dance injuries has made me understand the physical and emotional challenges that patients face. I lost a once in a lifetime opportunity to go to an out of town dance event because of an injury and I personally know it hurts not being able to do something you love. That is why I want to ensure that all patients are able to continue doing what they love. Ever since I got hurt my career in orthopedics has been confirmed and my goal is to use my personal experiences to make sure no one gets neglected or unheard because their injury has something to do with a bone or a ligament. Every injury should receive the same urgent medical attention and not be put off because it doesn't look major. To conclude, my desire to become an orthopedic nurse practitioner is sparked by my personal experiences with being hurt and overlooked by doctors. I’ve learned many skills in dance and plan to use them in my medical career. My experiences have shaped my character and given me a new perspective on how patients feel and how medicine is like. I am dedicated to making a difference in the medical field ensuring that every injured patient receives the medical attention they deserve.