My experience with mental health has shown me quite a few things. I have seen firsthand how easily anyone, at any age, can succumb to habits that can destroy their lives. I have learned how fragile a person can be when they don’t know how to access the help they need. I’ve also seen how happy a person is when they learn that they are not alone. It is a true happiness to see that the struggles you go through, the pain you feel, are not so different than the struggles of someone else. Learning that you aren’t alone in your struggle makes the weight of your struggle lighter. I have seen someone who many would consider permanently broken be able to cope and survive their struggle. I have seen people overcome what many would call insurmountable obstacles, survive what many would call impossible odds. Everyone goes through struggles, and many people don’t know how to ask for the help they need. I know I was one of these people for the longest time. But once I learned that I wasn't alone, I was able to thrive and heal. I have dealt with my own mental health struggles. When I was 12, I received news that sent me down a dark path that sent me spiraling downward. I thought that my only escape was behaviors that destroyed not only myself but those around me. I thought I was caught in a never-ending loop of struggle and hopelessness with no way to escape. I thought that I was a problem, and the only way to solve it was to take myself out of the equation. I secluded myself from everyone so that nobody would get hurt. However, when I learned that what I was doing was causing stress, I did one of the hardest things I have ever done. I asked for help. I had, by this time, been in and out of multiple mental health facilities. But I never actually took advantage of the support provided. I always breezed through the program, putting in little to no effort. But when I decided to get the help and use the resources at my disposal, I found that I had the strength to free myself of the chains that were my trauma. With the help of a solid support system, I have been able to thrive. It wasn’t easy, nor was it fast. But I was willing to overcome the obstacles in my way and, with the help of people who had no obligation to help me, I was able to overcome the hurdles I have faced thus far in life. The journey to healing is not a straight path. Rather, it is like a circle. Healing is not a one-and-done process. Everyone will fall, that's part of being human. But the ability to get back up, dust yourself off, and try again? That is the key to healing. People will often see a person relapsing, let's say, for the sake of an example, we're talking about an alcoholic going back to drinking after an extended period of being sober, and think that he is a failure. That is not the case, though. Everyone succumbs to weakness at some point in their lives. Everyone falls down darker paths. But the fact is that people are resilient. The alcoholic is not a failure; they are human. They struggle every day, but each day they wake up and try to change themselves for the better. They aren't less than or weaker than anyone. They just need someone to help them. This is what I have seen and experienced with mental health.

Hello, my name is Charlie Agliano and this is my submission for the Laurette Scholarship. Describe my life with autism diagnosis and how I've grown. Autism has been prevalent in my life for as long as I can remember. I was diagnosed at a very young age. My mom always told me that not to use my diagnosis as a crutch, but it's harder to do that than people think because people often will look first at you when you have autism and they'll be like, oh look, there's the autistic kid or whatnot. And it was hard, I'll admit that. It's hard to live with autism, but I was able to grow by Not letting others' opinions or words or just thoughts about me affect me as much as people thought that because people often saw me as less than. So I learned, you think I'm less than? That's your opinion, not mine. The thing, the hardest part about living with autism though was that stigma. But I've learned to have tougher skin because of it. I've grown in so many ways from it, especially thanks to ABA therapy. I'm able to have better eye contact, but that's still hard for me. And it's also easier for me to resolve situations. I was a non-verbal when I was diagnosed. Now I am too verbal. But I've grown a lot since I was diagnosed. And I'm glad I was diagnosed early because I know others aren't diagnosed as early. But thanks to not only my own growth, but my mom being there to support me throughout my entire journey, I was able to grow in exponential ways. I mean, currently I'm at Alpine Academy for therapeutic reasons, but my autism actually makes it easier for me to get treatment in a hard way because I'm able to learn things a lot faster. So that's my life with autism and how I've grown.

My mother is the strongest woman I know. She has overcome every challenge that has come her way. She raised three children, one of whom was diagnosed with numerous mental disorders, with patience and understanding. Even when one child caused her immense grief, she never stopped loving him. That child’s name is Charlie Agliano. My mother has loved me and supported me through my entire life. When I was in crisis, she was always there and ready to do whatever it took to help me. She isn't perfect, nobody is. But she is as close to perfect as anyone could be. She did one of the hardest things a mother could do in order for me to have a better mental state. She let me go away to a place where I could get help. The hardest part of it, she has told me, is the fact that she isn’t able to be physically with me every day. But she understands that I needed help that just couldn’t be found at home. My mother has experience with dealing with mentally unstable men. My Biological Dad had numerous mental hospitalizations. When my sister was born, my dad left us. He was scared of having to take care of and provide for us. He left my mom with two children to raise on her own. The next dad did the same, adding a third child to my mother's plate. During this time, I was diagnosed with ADHD and Autism. All these factors, if it were anybody else, would destroy a person. I know that I couldn’t have handled it as well as my mother has and continues to. She has fought to make certain I have received the help I needed without making me feel like I was weird or less than anyone. My mother has taught me many things. She has taught me to go with the flow of life instead of trying to change the unchangeable. She has taught me that the only person who can control my actions is me. She has taught me not to use my autism as an excuse, that my diagnoses are not who I am, but to take accountability for my own actions. She has taught me that my past does not define my future. And she continues to teach me. She shows me every day that, if I am determined and resilient in everything I do, I will be able to achieve my dreams. I am so glad that my mom is who she is.

My name is Charlie Agliano. The people around me didn't know that. They know me as the autistic kid, the PTSD kid, the ADHD kid, and a whole plethora of nicknames that are centered around my mental health conditions and disabilities. Throughout my 17 years of life, I have been diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Persistent Depressive Disorder (PDD), General Anxiety Disorder, and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). I have dealt with, and sometimes continue to deal with, intrusive thoughts caused by my disorders. It got to a point where I was attempting suicide every day. I had a total of approximately 80 different 5150 holds (a legal procedure in California that allows for the temporary detention of an individual believed to be a danger to themselves, others, or gravely disabled) over the span of four years. I thought that I had no right to be alive, that I didn't deserve life. It affected not only my own well-being but also the well-being of my family. Not only did the mental hospitals, which didn't even work, cost a lot of money. It was also emotionally taxing on my family. My Mom was always stressed that I would try to hurt myself, and my siblings were always afraid that when I became dysregulated, I would attack them. After those four years, it got so bad that my school district and my IEP team said that they would pay for me to go to a therapeutic boarding school in Utah known as Alpine Academy. At first, I thought, "Well, let's see how long it takes them to give up on me." I thought that they would just do what every other treatment center had done, which was to give me a whole bunch of meds that did not work, then send me home. Boy, was I wrong. I'll be honest, at first, it was extremely difficult to try to get better. I had, after all, felt as if I had "been there, done that." But as I began to let the system work, opening my mind to the help that was being given to me, I began to heal. Healing is not a fast process. I learned that quickly. It is also a never-ending process. Everyone will struggle, even if they don't have the disorders that I have. However, if you are willing to put in both the time and the work, you can be able to overcome your challenges. I have also learned that you don't have to do it alone. Even though I caused so much stress and anxiety to my family, they were still there to help me, even when I pushed them away. While I am still attending Alpine Academy, I have not had an incident involving suicide in 11 months! Four years ago, I would have never thought that I could go that long without an attempt. I know that healing still takes time, and that the scars I have will never fully heal, but I now know something that helps me to continue to heal. I don't have to do it alone.