It gets better. I wish I could go back in time and tell my younger self that it won't always be this way. You won't always struggle with the hopelessness, the inability to focus, the mood swings and the frustration. One day, you will find the answers and the help you need to become the best version of yourself. At 36, I was diagnosed with adult ADHD and severe depression. This was after I was fired from a job I held for 5 years due to my "lack of focus and numerous mistakes." It was a devastating blow, not only for my financial life but I felt like a failure in my professional life too. All my life I was told to focus more, to stop day dreaming, to "buckle down" and be serious. I heard, "Caryn is so bright! But she needs to pay better attention in class." In high school they even compared my test scores to my grades and tried to figure out what learning disability I had. My test scores were exemplary, but my grades were in the low C's. The answer my mother gave was, "She just doesn't want to do the homework." Part of that was correct, but the other part was that I couldn't concentrate long enough to finish. Realizing the struggle of my early teens and mid-20's had a cause and subsequently a cure made the weight on my shoulders just melt away. I wasn't broken. I wasn't doing any of this on purpose. It was just the way my brain was wired. These feelings on inadequacy sunk me into a deep depression. I was lost, both emotionally and mentally. I felt as if I were standing alone on my own planet, unable to breathe or move. Thoughts of suicide became more frequent. I figured that I would be less of a burden on my family and on society if I were to just disappear. That thought scared me to my core and I finally accepted the fact that I couldn't continue on like that, so I reached out to a psychologist for help. I began taking the correct medication and started on therapy for the depression and the ADHD. It made me realize that a lot of the feelings and the ways I kept reacting to people were out of frustration. Frustration at my inability to "just get it" like everyone else. It affected my money management, my schooling and my personal life to such a degree that I thought I would never be able to go back to school. I had sabotaged relationships without knowing what I was doing. Friendships were strained and even the relationship with my parents suffered because of my depression and my disorder. At 37, I have decided to go back to get my degree in Human Resources. I know that my experience with depression and ADHD will be able to help others who might not realize what they're up against. I want to be a source of inspiration and guidance for men and especially women in the work force who may not realize that their problems have solutions. I have been able to succeed in my life , better than I could have hoped, now that I have the correct tools in my toolbox. My message that I will carry with me into my work is this: You are not alone. There are people who can help and above all else.... it gets better.

Imagine a hallway, filled with doors of all shapes and sizes. These all have large glass windows and you can see the wonderous things beyond, but the problem is they are all locked. Education for me is the key that can open those doors. Early in my life, I had struggled with mental health and undiagnosed ADHD that prevented me from reaching my potential and continuing my education, but it never dulled my passion for education. I know that with it, I can make a meaningful impact on the people around me and in my profession. I have always believed that with an education, you can conquer the world. The gift of knowledge is one that can't be measured in paychecks or in lines on a resume. It allows us to grow as individuals and share that knowledge with others in order to create a better world. That gift is one of the most precious things we can possess. I have chosen to get my degree in Human Resources Management. I know that I can provide a safe space and be a confidant as well as a waypoint to help others in their search for direction, both personally and professionally. Throughout my life, education has come to represent hope. Hope in a brighter future, not just for myself but for my children and their children as well. It represents the key to unlocking your full potential and realizing that no dream is out of reach. It just takes perseverance, dedication... and education.

Growing up overweight was at times, a nightmare. I remember crying in the dressing room during school shopping because my mother had to go get the next largest size up. I remember feeling invisible at school, ignored and unimportant. My health has always been good, I just happened to be overweight. Children can be unintentionally cruel and sometimes intentional as well so it was a daily struggle to find my place. As I got into my teens and early adulthood, I realized that a lot of who I was stemmed from trying to make people laugh and to make them feel comfortable and also... to see me. I remember being the "funny" one, always cracking a joke about my weight or saying something clever to make people crack a smile. At least if they were laughing at my joke, they weren't laughing at me. Along with my weight issues, I always had trouble with concentration in school, making my grades suffer and adding some degree of humiliation. I was always daydreaming and couldn't remember assignments. I was even evaluated for a learning disability since my grades were so low but my test scores were very high. I limped along through school as best I could, graduating far down in my class rank. I didn't even attempt college at that time, convinced that I would automatically fail. As time went on in my adult life, I sunk into a deep depression, always hiding it behind humor. When I was well into my 30s, I was diagnosed with ADHD. Suddenly, I had a name for all of the struggles I had to endure up until that point. I wasn't broken, I wasn't damaged and what I was feeling was valid. I started therapy and medication for depression and the ADHD and the long journey to self acceptance. What I learned along the way is that everyone has a unique way of looking at and processing the world around them. I learned that you can't judge someone's experience of the world and that empathy and understanding can make your everyday relationships and interactions a whole lot smoother. Once I had the tools to succeed and built the confidence in myself, I knew I wanted to go to school to get my degree in Human Resources. I love working with people and I know I can use what I've learned personally to help the people at my work, to be a safe space for them to confide in and perhaps find a bit of their own direction. I found all of this because I chose to love myself.

Sacrifice means different things to different people. To some it may mean giving up buying your favorite pair of shoes because you need that money to buy parts for your car. To others, it's a selfless act that is done out of pure love for the betterment of the people around them. My stepfather is that person. When my birth father abused my mother and left her at 28 years old with me, a six month old and my five year old sister, she was sure her world was over. In walked my stepfather and together, they began the journey of healing. Coming from a devoutly religious Southern Baptist family from Kentucky, it was borderline scandalous that he would marry a divorced Northerner with two children, but from the beginning his devotion to us never waned. When I was three years old, he adopted us legally, changing our names and our lives from that moment on and became my "real" father, no longer just a "stepdad". I remember him working his way up to management through years of menial jobs, struggling to put food on the table. We were on government assistance for the first six years of my life, but he was able to help get our family stable. Together, he and my mother were able to work their way up to home ownership and have since retired and are now enjoying life with their grandchildren and their garden. The road along the way, however, was a rocky one. Crohn's disease, diabetes and kidney disease led to many sleepless nights and mountains of medical bills. Through all of this, he never showed his pain to me or my sister. Always quick with a corny "dad" joke to lighten the mood, he never let on to how scared he must have been or how tired he was from all of the pain. Just recently, he was diagnosed with early stage leukemia and even still, I receive those corny dad jokes now over text and video chat and he always asks how my day was or how I'm doing first. I will forever be thankful that I have a role model like my father. His love and perseverance have shaped me into who I am today. My only wish is that the rest of my life can be just as fulfilling as the first part, thanks to my hero... my dad.

Role models can come in all shapes and sizes. They can be famous or infamous, celebrity or familiar. I believe the more important role models in our lives are not the ones who inspire us to be like them, but rather the ones who inspire you to be a better you. That person for me, is my father. Growing up in semi-rural Kentucky in the 60s and 70s, my father saw firsthand the awfulness of segregation and the pain inflicted upon minorities in some southern communities. This inspired him to join the Armed Forces, becoming an infantryman in the U.S. Army at eighteen. His father and his two older brothers had already joined and he felt it a source of pride to continue in service to the country. His ultimate goal was to provide humanitarian aid, not only to the people in the United States, but to serve other less fortunate people around the world, especially in times of crisis. He left the army to join the U.S. Navy, wanting to pursue a more focused approach to aid on a world wide stage. After being stationed in Germany for two years, he returned to the States and was introduced to my mother through a mutual friend. The only problem was that she lived in Ohio, and he in Kentucky. For two years, they wrote letters to each other every week and he made the nine hour drive up to Ohio to see her once a month. Their love never faltered and they were married in July of 1986. When he married my mother, he became an instant father. My sister was eight and I was three. Coming from a strong Southern Baptist household, there were high tensions in his family when he decided to marry a divorced woman from the North with two children, but my father took to his role with ease. He was loving and patient, always quick with a quirky dad joke that induced groans from my mother and giggles from me and my sister. He went back to school to get his college degree when he was in his late 40s in order to work in Hospital Administration, for the betterment of our family. I remember long days of seeing him at the computer, typing away before I went to sleep and waking up to the same scenario. He did all of this while working a full time management job and raising two children. I learned from him that determination and work ethic make you stand out from a sea of employees. I learned that your character is more important than a paycheck and that your word should be always followed by action. The one most important thing I learned from my father is love. Love in the form of selflessness, in the form of unspoken action, in the form of doing what's right for people, even if no one is around to see. He has lived his life in the service of others and has helped me become a strong and deeply compassionate person. I also have a slew of corny dad jokes up my sleeve, just in case I'm ever at a boring cocktail party.

This is Charlie. He is a lovable, crazy two year old Corgi/Jack Russell mix and is the center of our world. We adopted him at eight months old from a home that couldn't provide the time and energy needed to help him thrive. He was being left alone in a crate for up to 12 hours a day and then once let out, became destructive and disruptive. My boyfriend and I took him home and over the next few months helped him transform into a health and happy best friend for life. @carynburns83

Working with people has always been a passion of mine. Admittedly, during my younger years, I suffered from a terrible lack of focus for my career. What did I want to do with my life? What if I ended up doing something I hated? It was ultimately fear that kept me in low paying and easily attainable jobs for the past ten years. I didn't understand the value of myself until I was diagnosed with adult ADHD. Once I received the correct medication and began therapy to help heal the years of negative thinking, I realized that my potential is truly unbound. I decided to apply for a position as a Customer Engagement Specialist for a large software company. The position was incredible and the benefits would have improved me and my family's economic situation by leaps and bounds. I knew I had the people skills for the job and after four separate interviews, I knew I was destined for this position. Then one day I received the "Dear John" email from the HR department. While my skills were impressive and they enjoyed getting to know me, they ultimately decided to go with a candidate who possessed the technical skills, i.e. a degree. The interview process however had sparked a fire in me that finally illuminated my path. I want to work with people. I like working with people and I know I can help. There was only one course of action for me; a degree in Human Resources. Twelve years ago I had attempted to get my Associate's degree online. I was determined and ready for the challenge, but life had other plans. My father was diagnosed with kidney disease and cancer that same year and I had to abandon school in order to work full time to help support the household and my mother. I told myself that I would go have in six months. Six months turned into a year, turned into five years, turned into ten. At that time I had amassed an impressive professional resume, but alas, the lack of degree was a hinderance. I was devastated at my rejection. I kept asking myself over and over what was wrong or what I did wrong and then it hit me: a degree. It was as if a light switch went off in my brain. I immediately began researching schools that would ultimately help me achieve my goal of being a Human Resources professional. I made a vow to myself that whatever rejection I received in the future would only fuel me as motivation. I believe that there are reasons behind rejections and it serves as a way to learn more about ourselves in order to help us grow. Not only to grow, but to thrive is the key. Rejection can hurt a great deal, but we can turn that pain into power. We can turn that anger into action. When we all take steps to improve ourselves both personally and professionally, it only adds to the wealth of knowledge that we can share with one another.

It gets better. I wish I could go back in time and tell my younger self that it won't always be this way. You won't always struggle with the hopelessness, the inability to focus, the mood swings and the frustration. One day, you will find the answers and the help you need to become the best version of yourself. At 36, I was diagnosed with adult ADHD and severe depression. This was after I was fired from a job I held for 5 years due to my "lack of focus and numerous mistakes." It was a devastating blow, not only for my financial life but I felt like a failure in my professional life too. 5 years before that I had started online college but had to abandon my goal because my father was diagnosed with kidney disease and cancer. I worked full time to help bring in money for household expenses and to help support my mother as well. My father is an amazing man, a disabled veteran of the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Army and is the bar that I measure all of my success by. I told myself that I would go back in six months. Well six months turned into a year, turned into three years, turned into ten. When I was fired from my long term job due to my mental health, I only saw myself as a failure with every single one of my actions just being plain inadequate. These feelings on inadequacy sunk me into a deep depression. I was lost, both emotionally and mentally. I felt as if I were standing alone on my own planet, unable to breathe or move. Thoughts of suicide became more frequent and ultimately ended with an attempt on my life. I figured that I would be less of a burden on my family and on society if I were to just disappear. That thought scared me to my core and I finally accepted the fact that I couldn't continue on like that when the attempt wasn't successful, so I reached out to a psychologist for help. I began taking the correct medication and started on therapy for the depression and the ADHD. It made me realize that a lot of the feelings and the ways I kept reacting to people were out of frustration. Frustration at my inability to "just get it" like everyone else. It affected my money management, my schooling and my personal life to such a degree that I thought I would never be able to go back to school. I had sabotaged relationships without knowing what I was doing. Friendships were strained and even the relationship with my parents suffered because of my depression and my disorder. At 37, I have decided to go back to get my degree in Human Resources. I know that my experience with depression and ADHD will be able to help others who might not realize what they're up against. I want to be a source of inspiration and guidance for men and especially women in the work force who may not realize that their problems have solutions. I have been able to succeed in my life , better than I could have hoped, now that I have the correct tools in my toolbox. My message that I will carry with me into my work is this: You are not alone. There are people who can help and above all else.... it gets better.

At 36, I was diagnosed with adult ADHD and severe depression. This was after I was fired from a job I held for 5 years due to my "lack of focus and numerous mistakes." It was a devastating blow, not only for my financial life but I felt like a failure in my professional life too. All my life I was told to focus more, to stop day dreaming, to "buckle down" and be serious. I heard, "Caryn is so bright! But she needs to pay better attention in class." In high school they even compared my test scores to my grades and tried to figure out what learning disability I had. My test scores were exemplary, but my grades were in the low C's. The answer my mother gave was, "She just doesn't want to do the homework." Part of that was correct, but the other part was that I couldn't concentrate long enough to finish. Realizing the struggle of my early teens and mid-20's had a cause and subsequently a cure made the weight on my shoulders just melt away. I wasn't broken. I wasn't doing any of this on purpose. It was just the way my brain was wired. At 37, I have decided to go back to get my degree in Human Resources. I know that my experience with depression and ADHD will be able to help others who might not realize what they're up against. I want to be a source of inspiration and guidance for men and especially women in the work force who may not realize that their problems have solutions. I have been able to succeed in my life , better than I could have hoped, now that I have the correct tools in my toolbox.

It gets better. I wish I could go back in time and tell my younger self that it won't always be this way. You won't always struggle with the hopelessness, the inability to focus, the mood swings and the frustration. One day, you will find the answers and the help you need to become the best version of yourself. At 36, I was diagnosed with adult ADHD and severe depression. This was after I was fired from a job I held for 5 years due to my "lack of focus and numerous mistakes." It was a devastating blow, not only for my financial life but I felt like a failure in my professional life too. All my life I was told to focus more, to stop day dreaming, to "buckle down" and be serious. I heard, "Caryn is so bright! But she needs to pay better attention in class." In high school they even compared my test scores to my grades and tried to figure out what learning disability I had. My test scores were exemplary, but my grades were in the low C's. The answer my mother gave was, "She just doesn't want to do the homework." Part of that was correct, but the other part was that I couldn't concentrate long enough to finish. Realizing the struggle of my early teens and mid-20's had a cause and subsequently a cure made the weight on my shoulders just melt away. I wasn't broken. I wasn't doing any of this on purpose. It was just the way my brain was wired. These feelings on inadequacy sunk me into a deep depression. I was lost, both emotionally and mentally. I felt as if I were standing alone on my own planet, unable to breathe or move. Thoughts of suicide became more frequent. I figured that I would be less of a burden on my family and on society if I were to just disappear. That thought scared me to my core and I finally accepted the fact that I couldn't continue on like that, so I reached out to a psychologist for help. I began taking the correct medication and started on therapy for the depression and the ADHD. It made me realize that a lot of the feelings and the ways I kept reacting to people were out of frustration. Frustration at my inability to "just get it" like everyone else. It affected my money management, my schooling and my personal life to such a degree that I thought I would never be able to go back to school. I had sabotaged relationships without knowing what I was doing. Friendships were strained and even the relationship with my parents suffered because of my depression and my disorder. At 37, I have decided to go back to get my degree in Human Resources. I know that my experience with depression and ADHD will be able to help others who might not realize what they're up against. I want to be a source of inspiration and guidance for men and especially women in the work force who may not realize that their problems have solutions. I have been able to succeed in my life , better than I could have hoped, now that I have the correct tools in my toolbox. My message that I will carry with me into my work is this: You are not alone. There are people who can help and above all else.... it gets better.