My name is Destiny Sambrano. I was a senior at La Pryor High School, soon to be a freshman at Southwest Texas Junior College. Originally from Idaho, I moved to Texas in 2022 to be closer to my family. Growing up in a low-income Hispanic household, mental health was not a big part of my life until it started to affect my grades in school. With the help of my family, teachers, and counselors, I have managed to improve myself. Now, I am striving to continue my education to earn a degree in psychology and become a mental health counselor to help those in need. I am applying to as many scholarships as I can to help lift the financial burden that comes with going to college. As a rising college freshman, I am eager to learn more about psychology and how it can be used to support mental health. My goal is to use my education to make a positive impact on mental health in my community. Mental health is an important issue that affects many people, especially those in low-income and minority communities. I have seen firsthand how mental health struggles can impact a person's life. I want to be able to offer the same support that I received to others who are struggling. By becoming a mental health counselor, I hope to provide guidance and strategies to help people cope with their challenges. My high school GPA is 3.9, which reflects my dedication to my studies despite the obstacles I have faced. I believe that my background and experiences have prepared me well for a career in mental health. I am committed to working hard and making a difference in the lives of others. In the future, I envision myself working in my community to raise awareness about mental health and provide support to those in need. I want to help people find strategies to cope with their struggles and improve their overall well-being. By doing so, I hope to create a more supportive and understanding environment for everyone. Thank you for considering my application for the Sewing Seeds: Lena B. Davis Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship would greatly help me in my journey to become a mental health counselor and make a positive impact on mental health in my community. I am passionate about this field and am dedicated to making a difference. Your support would help me achieve my goals and contribute to a better future for those struggling with mental health issues.

I’m the youngest of four siblings. I lived in a fairly small town called Idaho Falls, where I grew up for the majority of my life. I was raised in a low income Hispanic household and my parents were rarely home just so they could provide for my siblings and I. My home didn’t feel like home, and it affected my mental health severely. There would be times when I would dread going home due to constant arguments about money or other trivial things. My mother also didn’t know much English; she only knew the basic words she would need to ask for the simplest of things, but even so, it was difficult for her to have important conversations with people. My anxiety would often affect my studies, and I would ask to leave early from class. I'm grateful for the teachers that helped me pass to the next grade, but my attendance was greatly affected, and I lost credit due to my negligence. My relationship with my older siblings was immensely strained, and on numerous occasions, I would find myself in the middle of an argument with them over insignificant things. Every one of my siblings has been admitted to a mental facility due to self-harm or suicide attempts, and that only added to the tension in our house, to the point where I too started self-harming and had thoughts about ending it all. However, my mother and eldest sister were the main reasons why I would try to better myself despite feeling unimportant and useless. Throughout my freshman and sophomore year, I would feel lonely while sitting with a group of people I have known since my junior high years, but I would feel more at ease with them than I would with the people that were my own flesh and blood. With the help of therapy, I managed to repair the broken bond I had with my siblings, and it made me look at life a little differently. My other sister and brother have started their lives with their own families, and near the end of my sophomore year, my mother, eldest sister, and I moved to Batesville, Texas, to be closer with our father. I loved the idea of being with my father again, but he felt more like a stranger. Although everything went well at first, our finances began to decline again, and that only restarted the conflict between our family. During the rest of my sophomore year, I made friends fairly quickly due to the school being quite small, but I felt out of place. I was shy, and the new friends I made were well known, athletic, eccentric, and outgoing—the complete opposite of me. While there would be days where we would eat nothing but beans and rice, my sister and I would rely on each other to make sure that there was some sort of stability in the house. But throughout our hardships, our faith in God has given us a sort of comfort to help us continue on with our lives. The church community has helped us greatly both in Idaho and here in Texas. We would not have made it this far without their help and the help of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. My mother has taught me the values of trying to live like Jesus by being kind to my neighbors and remembering that there is no other God than my God. I will strive to help those who have the same experiences as me and hope to help those in need.

I was raised in a low-income Hispanic household; mental health wasn’t a factor in my life, and due to my lack of knowledge of it, my academic performance began to decline at an early age. I am the youngest of four siblings, and my parents’ relationship was always strained, but they would try to hide it behind closed doors, and it affected my siblings and me a great deal. At the time, I wasn’t aware of what depression was, and it was only when I was failing my classes that my parents decided to put me in counseling. I was skeptical of my counselor and didn’t want to open up to her at all. In fact, I relied on people on social media to listen to my problems, and due to this, my social anxiety has become a major obstacle in my life. Before I entered high school, I was doing relatively well in school, but when COVID-19 hit, it took a toll on me and my grades. I felt isolated, unmotivated to do anything, and at some point, suicidal. During my freshman and sophomore years, I was too anxious to talk to people, so I always remained alongside people who I had known since middle school, but there were times when I still felt as though I was just a stranger in their circle. My anxiety was so severe that I often left school, which deeply affected my grades, caused a loss of credits, and worsened my anxiety. I was behind on work, but I was always too scared to ask for help, whether it was emotionally or academically. I had no social life; I wasn’t home as often either since I had a job. I used my job as a distraction, and from there I would try to improve my social skills, and it was helpful. I was able to rely more on my counselor. I moved to Texas, and I was able to improve myself. I made friends fairly easily, but my home life isn’t as smooth. I live in a home where money is an issue, and there isn’t a day where money isn’t brought into the conversation. I rely on my sister for guidance, and my grades have improved tremendously. I managed to be nominated for the National Honor Society, and I always make sure my grades are where they should be. I hope to lessen the burden of paying college tuition, and I hope to earn my degree in psychology to become a therapist or counselor. I don’t want people to live the same way as I did, and I hope to improve their lives by even just a little.

I was raised in a low-income Hispanic household; mental health wasn’t a factor in my life, and due to my lack of knowledge of it, my academic performance began to decline at an early age. I am the youngest of four siblings, and my parents’ relationship was always strained, but they would try to hide it behind closed doors, and it affected my siblings and me a great deal. At the time, I wasn’t aware of what depression was, and it was only when I was failing my classes that my parents decided to put me in counseling. I was skeptical of my counselor and didn’t want to open up to her at all. In fact, I relied on people on social media to listen to my problems, and due to this, my social anxiety has become a major obstacle in my life. Before I entered high school, I was doing relatively well in school, but when COVID-19 hit, it took a toll on me and my grades. I felt isolated, unmotivated to do anything, and at some point, suicidal. During my freshman and sophomore years, I was too anxious to talk to people, so I always remained alongside people who I had known since middle school, but there were times when I still felt as though I was just a stranger in their circle. My anxiety was so severe that I often left school, which deeply affected my grades, caused a loss of credits, and worsened my anxiety. I was behind on work, but I was always too scared to ask for help, whether it was emotionally or academically. I had no social life; I wasn’t home as often either since I had a job. I used my job as a distraction, and from there I would try to improve my social skills, and it was helpful. I was able to rely more on my counselor. I moved to Texas, and I was able to improve myself. I made friends fairly easily, but my home life isn’t as smooth. I live in a home where money is an issue, and there isn’t a day where money isn’t brought into the conversation. I rely on my sister for guidance, and my grades have improved tremendously. I managed to be nominated for the National Honor Society, and I always make sure my grades are where they should be. I hope to lessen the burden of paying college tuition, and I hope to earn my degree in psychology to become a therapist or counselor. I don’t want people to live the same way as I did, and I hope to improve their lives by even just a little.

I grew up in a home where my parents were absent, and I didn’t have a relationship with my siblings except for my eldest sister. I had a counselor, but I relied more on people on social media or some of my close friends at school. By being able to repair the bond I have with my family and opening up to my counselor, I have managed to improve myself and become a better person. For almost all of my childhood, my parents were often working, so it was rare to see them in a room together. However, the concept of money was always brought into their conversations, and it would always result in a massive argument. During middle school, when I was with my friends, I didn’t have to think about my life at home, but day by day I felt as though I was living a lie, and my depression became more severe. My eldest sister took on the role of parent despite having her own struggles. She tried to keep peace, but at times it would backfire.  We had family counseling, but it never worked out; it was only when we had separate sessions that we managed to form somewhat of a bond. My second sister and I never got along, but when we combined our counseling sessions, we were able to amend the relationship we never thought we would have. However, my sister went her separate way, and I had sessions alone. While it was nerve-wracking at first, I started to warm up to my counselor, and while I was doing better for a while, COVID-19 hit, and many things began to go wrong. I couldn’t go to counseling until months later; my motivation decreased as my depression increased, and as high school began, I struggled. My anxiety became so severe that both my grades and attendance suffered immensely, and it was only in the middle of my sophomore year that I wanted to do better. My parents then decided to move to Texas towards the end of my sophomore year, and I was able to have a new start. I worked hard to repair the damage I had caused myself. I continued to do better, my grades improved, and I rarely missed a class. I was even nominated to enter the National Honor Society. I was awarded the highest academic grade in both health and algebra, and I was even awarded for perfect attendance. I continue to struggle at home, but I’m able to rely on my eldest sister to help me, and I hope to become a counselor or therapist to help children, adolescents, and adults who have the same struggles as me.

I am the youngest child in a low-income, minority household. Spanish is my first language and while there are times when I struggled at times with speaking, my Mexican mother helps and reminds me how to pronounce them. Spanish is often spoken a majority of the time in my household for the sake of my mother, she has lived in the United States for over 26 years and English doesn't stick to her. I would often substitute words in English for Spanish and vice versa, due to this, I was often misunderstood and my anxiety worsened making me forget the Spanish I already knew. During my middle school years, I wanted to try something new and took a French class, I did pretty well considering how some of the words were almost similar to Spanish but when Covid hit, I dealt with the consequence of neglecting my studies. High school came around and I was failing French, I switched to a language I was more familiar with and I was one of the top students, I even regained some of the Spanish I had forgotten about and even learned new words. Eventually I switched out of classes due to receiving the credits that I needed. I love Spanish, it can be so beautiful and fun but sometimes overwhelming, especially when you're not as fluent as someone who was born and raised in a Spanish speaking country. I have been to Mexico a few times and I've felt overwhelmed by not knowing much of the language and I was often in the spotlight for being able to speak English. I grew up in the town of Idaho Falls, the amount of people that knew Spanish there cannot compare to the amount of people who know Spanish in Texas. At 14, I started working at McDonald's, I didn't need to speak Spanish since all I did was clean, I wasn't old enough to work the register and my coworkers all spoke English. My second job when I was 15, during my time at a restaurant called Mahana Fresh, I didn't speak much Spanish either but I enjoyed my time there and was able to improve my social skills. After I moved, my mother opened a small taco truck in Texas, there I helped out, took orders and I was able to put my Spanish to good use. After some time, I began working at Burger King for a few months, and it really helped when I was able to speak to the customers. It was a challenge to put my Spanish to the test but I think it was worth it. Even now, I still try to improve on my Spanish and while I'm not fluent but I'm grateful for being able to have a way of communicating with my loved ones who don't speak English. After graduation, I plan to spend time with family before starting college and from there I hope to get my basics in psychology to become a therapist or counselor. After completing 1-2 years, I will transfer to a university to get my Masters. I grew up not knowing how important mental health was and I want to help adolescents find their paths and view life in another perspective. From there I want to be able to teach my future children the importance of mental health so that they can move onto the future with a growth mindset. I’m proud of myself to be able to speak, write and understand both languages, so that I can help future families during my time as a therapist or counselor.

I was in the first grade and every Friday, my elementary school would sell popcorn for a dollar and you would win prizes if your popcorn bag had a small sticker at the bottom. I come from a low-income household and the only time I was able to get a bag of popcorn was when I would look throughout the house in small crevices or sometimes when doing laundry. I was able to save five dollars in quarters and I waited for the bell to ring when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw someone laying in the 3 feet of snow, crying. There was a boy who was known for crying over the littlest of things and he was often by himself, I didn't interact with him before this time but at this time, I went up to him and he explained to me that he was pushed to the ground by older students and they stole his money. I was hesitant but I gave him my popcorn money and put him back on his feet. Since then, we were practically joined at the hips, wherever I went he went, when we needed to get into partners we knew we were going to be together. This went on for a long while but in sixth grade, he started getting more depressed due to issues at home but I was always there to give a helping hand if he needed it, and not just me, we had other friends that he could rely on. During middle school, he started to make friends on his own and he was able to be more open but we were still the greatest of friends even until our freshman year. We sat together and we laughed as we used to but again, he became even more depressed and I would often see him sitting in the corner with his head down. I would remind him of the good things in life despite feeling depressed myself but I made sure that I made him feel heard. There were even instances where I had to go to the office to report about his mentality and though he would be upset, I didn't mind if it meant he could get the help he needed. He began to change more and more, eventually, he wasn't the same person I met all those years ago, he hung around with the wrong people, his family situation wasn't any better and his grades began to plummet. I felt anxious for him but I knew I had no control over his life but I would still continue to give him advice despite him shrugging it off, and in the end, I realized that he needed more help that was beyond me. Near the end of my sophomore year, I moved to Texas to have a new start, there I have improved on myself and every once in a while I think of my old friend, every so often I'll send a message to check up on him and hope that he's doing well.

I was brought up in a low-income Hispanic household, my parents were not always available due to work and I was mainly raised by babysitters and my three older siblings, all of our clothes were second hand and our toys were bought in yard sales, eating out was a rare occurrence and we would only go to stores like Ross or Deseret Industries. We would go to the local food bank early in the morning just to have food for a weeks and if we wanted to go on a vacation, it would have to be at the residence of a relative. I have been deeply affected by the way I was raised in a home where buying miscellaneous things was a luxury and always something to look forward to, especially back to school shopping. At the age of fourteen, I got my first job at McDonald's, I didn't work as many hours but I made a decent amount for someone my age, since I was so young, I didn't realize how hard it was to save money. I would go through my money like water, not thinking of the consequences of my actions. Since my family's financial situation was unstable, I would pitch in as much as I could, not knowing that I only helped a very small fraction of what my parents had to pay. As my income became more scarce, the more I tried to save my money, however, it would at times only be in vain since things would go so wrong and I needed to pitch in what I could despite my parents telling me that all I needed to do was keep my grades up. I never learned how to actually manage my money and I constantly stress over everything that involves money, I don't want to burden my parents by asking them to buy me things, if I really need anything, I would ask hesitantly and work even harder in school. I try to spend as little as possible, and while my parents worry that I'm not living my life to the fullest, I am simply grateful that I'm able to go home with a clear conscience. My parents have accumulated a sum of debt and I don't wish to burden them with even more debt, as I strive to continue keeping my grades up, I am constantly looking for opportunities to help them so that they don't have to worry as much in the future. I want to major in psychology and have a minor in finance so that I don't have to struggle as much in the future and also help my parents in any way I can.

I used to be a resident in Idaho Falls, Idaho and moved to Batesville, Texas during my sophomore year, before moving I was suffering from severe anxiety, ADHD, and depression, due to this my grades and attendance affected me greatly. During my freshman year, I was sure I was going to have to drop out if I didn't make a difference in my decisions but I was on the verge of giving up after suffering many grievances. By my sophomore year, I was able to improve but there were still days when I just didn't feel like trying and still had issues with my grades and attendance. I was working during the first two years in high school and earned as much as I could while trying not to rely on my parents, I didn't want to burden by adding more to their plate. I started working at the age of 14 at McDonald's thanks to my older sister who was a manager at the time but I had to quit due to personal issues. Months later, I got a job at a place called Mahana Fresh, I was able to improve my social skills a little bit and it encouraged me to improve my grades. A few months before the end of the school year, my parents, sister and I moved to Texas, there I was able to recover the credits I had lost, I tried to improve my attendance as well and passed my sophomore year. My junior year was a lot better, my grades were AB average and I made sure to go to school everyday but I had to go back to Idaho for a month for a medical emergency and while I was not enrolled, I was met with the pressure of catching up with my peers but it wasn't an issue thanks to the help of my teachers. I was able to get nominated into the National Honor Society and since then I was able to keep my grades up. I am still in the National Honor Society and continue to come to school every day on time. I come from a low-income household and have submitted numerous for scholarships to help lift any more financial burden for my parents, they have always supported me in everything I do. I want to go to college for psychology to help people of all ages who have and are struggling through the same traumas as me, I want them to be able to see the world through a different perspective. I want to be able to get as much help as I can to help my parents who work day in and day out just to provide for my sister and I.

My mental health deteriorated during middle school and it deeply affected my freshman year. During my middle school years, I had a friend pass away from suicide and my siblings have been admitted to mental facilities after making attempts. My anxiety was so severe that I would often feel sick to my stomach from being overwhelmed by my surroundings and would often be taken out of school. Due to this, I missed a lot of school work and I lost credit as well. I was lost and my grades were terrible, I thought I would have to drop out due to being gone for so long and I never understood what was going on. Thanks to the help of my teachers, I was able to pass most of my classes and catch up with the rest of my class. During my sophomore year, my mental health improved thanks to my counselor. I don’t think I would have made it that far without her, although I was able to open up a little more, I still missed quite a bit of school which led to my grades dropping again. However, during the last few months of school, I moved to Texas and I was put into a credit recovery class. I tried my best to go to school but there were days when I just didn't feel like going but it wasn’t as often as when I was at my old school. As I started to improve my grades, so did my anxiety, I was more open towards people but I still struggle to talk to people. During my junior year, things were a lot better, I never missed a day of school and my grades were able to get me into the National Honor Society. Although I don’t have a counselor, I know I can rely on the people around me and I will continue to improve each day. My new friends can make me laugh and look forward to going to school, the teachers are really fun too, they can make a subject seem fun and being in the class can be enjoyable. My Senior year is even better, I have managed to talk to more people and I continue to show up to school on time and keep my grades up to make my parents and my sister proud. I hope to become a psychologist to help adolescents who have the same problems as me and show them a new way to look at life.

I hope to become a psychologist to make a difference in someone's life and to help give them a new mindset and view on life. I am the youngest in a low-income household, my parents and eldest sister have large financial burdens constantly hanging on their shoulders, I see them and can only feel helpless as I'm not able to help them financially, I was able to get a job for 3 months but my way of transportation was inaccessible due to one of our cars being repossessed, I had to quit and while I don't ask for anything from my parents or sister, they try to make sure I don't fall short of anything, and while I am grateful for all that they do, I would much rather they use that money to pay off anything that they need to. As a child, my mental health was severe, my parents were constantly away for work and I could only rely on my 3 older siblings to take care of me. My parents didn’t have the finances to take me to a counselor until I was in 5th grade when my mother noticed my grades were going down. I didn’t confide in my counselor about my problems but instead, I relied on strangers on social media to give me validation and advice. As the years passed, I was able to rely more and more on my counselor and I can proudly say that she is one of the reasons why I keep trying. During my middle school years, I lost a dear friend due to suicide and all 3 of my older siblings have been admitted to mental facilities after making attempts, at some point I started self-harming and considered taking my own life but the thought of my family crying convinced me to keep moving forward. There are times when my family starts to get overwhelmed by the debts that come in our mail and while they act like they have it covered, I get gray hairs stressing in their place. My other siblings have started their own lives with jobs and starting their own families, my parents, eldest sister and I moved to Texas to start a new life, while at first, everything was going well, our finances began to decline and since then, there are days when I don't want to go home. I’m choosing psychology as a career to help adolescents, to help them to keep moving forward so that there are brighter days ahead. I want to be able to be someone's safe place when it feels like everything is crashing down, I don't want children to go through the same things I went through, I want to make a difference and make my family proud.

I am the youngest of 4 in a low-income household, struggling with mental health issues due to a lack of awareness from my parents and siblings. I relied on social media for validation but at some point, I started to self-harm and become violent to everyone and everything. I had a counselor but I felt I couldn’t be helped I soon relied on her more as I grew older. There was a time in 7th grade, I made a friend who was eccentric and struggled with her own mental health and bullying. On May 4, 2019, my dear friend took her life, and I felt completely lost. Throughout my life, my siblings have also been admitted to mental facilities for making attempts and I am deeply traumatized by that. In 2022, my parents, eldest sister and I moved to Texas to start a new life. My other 2 siblings began their own lives, they started working and had their own families. Despite financial struggles, I aspire to attend college for psychology to help adolescents feel wanted and heard. I hope to make a difference in someone's life and make a difference in their family's lives. My family inspires me to keep moving forward, they have been with me every step of the way and I hope to make them proud, to have them know that I have changed and that I won't let them down.

As the youngest of a low-income household, my parents or siblings didn't teach me the importance of mental health, I relied on strangers on social media to give me the feeling of being wanted or loved but that only made me blind to the world around me. Outside of social media, my anxiety was severe, I was often taken out of school due to feeling overwhelmed by the people around me. As I grew older, my mind would begin to have thoughts, thoughts that no child my age should have had. I thought I was unwanted and that my family would be better off without me, I would self-harm and even become violent to the people around me. I did start seeing a counselor but there would be times when I would think that I was only wasting her time. I continued to rely on strangers, I would tell them how I was feeling or what I was thinking but while I couldn't help myself, I could've helped someone else. In 7th grade, I made a friend. She was eccentric, someone I hardly ever saw in my town. We clicked almost instantly and I would help her with her schoolwork when I noticed she was falling a little behind. Everything was great, she relied on me, I relied on her, she would tell me her secrets and I would tell her mine, but I was so focused on my family situations that I ignored the fact that my friend was struggling with her demons. She would wear thick bracelets to hide the cuts on her wrists, and become violent due to the trauma she faced as a child, she avoided going to class to interact with other delinquents and she never mentioned the bullying she was enduring by herself. There would be times when she would sit in a corner and think to herself, I wasn't sure what to do and watched from afar not aware of what was yet to come. On May 4, 2019, my dear friend took her life. I broke down when they announced the news. Almost everyone knew how close we were and only looked at me with pity as my face was stained with tears. The school let me take 2 days off to fully take in the situation and I cried so much, the day of the funeral, I couldn’t shed one tear, I would catch myself looking at her locker covered in notes and flowers, asking myself what I could have done, why didn’t I see it, why didn’t I help her, why did it have to be her? I felt completely lost, and as any depressed middle schooler would, I went to school with a smile like nothing happened. To this day, I still think about my friend who would have graduated in the year 2024 but alas, she’ll be walking with me in spirit as I walk. That wasn’t the only instance when I dealt with someone who thought about taking their life, all 3 of my siblings have been admitted to mental facilities after making attempts. My father who lived out of state would often have such thoughts as well and so would my mother, but they both try to stay strong for my siblings and me. Looking back, I wish I had gone to someone sooner, at some point I started relying on my counselor and managed to get better. In the year 2022, I moved to Texas with my parents and my eldest sister who suffers from a mental disability, at first everything went well but our finances began to decline and there were days when I didn’t want to go home, but I want to be able to go to college for psychology to help adolescents feel wanted and heard, I want children to feel safe, not feel how I felt when I was younger. I don’t wish to burden my parents by adding more to their plates but I hope to be able to make a difference in someone’s life.

As the youngest of a low-income household, my parents or siblings didn't teach me the importance of mental health, I relied on strangers on social media to give me the feeling of being wanted or loved but that only made me blind to the world around me. As I grew older, my mind would begin to have thoughts, thoughts that no child should have had. I felt unwanted and that my family would be better off without me, I would self-harm and even become violent to the people around me. I did start seeing a counselor but there would be times when I would think that I was only wasting her time. I continued to rely on strangers, I would tell them how I was feeling or what I was thinking but while I couldn't help myself, I could've helped someone else. In 7th grade, I made a friend. She was eccentric, someone I hardly ever saw in my town. We clicked almost instantly and I would help her with her schoolwork when I noticed she was falling a little behind. Everything was great, she relied on me, I relied on her, she would tell me her secrets and I would tell her mine, but I was so focused on my family situations that I ignored the fact that my friend was struggling with her demons. She would wear thick bracelets to hide the cuts on her wrists, and become violent due to the trauma she faced as a child, she avoided going to class to interact with other delinquents and she never mentioned the bullying she was enduring by herself. There would be times when she would sit in a corner and think to herself, I wasn't sure what to do and watched from afar not aware of what was yet to come. On May 4, 2019, my dear friend took her life. I broke down when they announced the news. Almost everyone knew how close we were and only looked at me with pity as my face was stained with tears. The school let me take 2 days off to fully take in the situation and I cried so much, the day of the funeral, I couldn’t shed one tear, I would catch myself looking at her locker covered in notes and flowers, asking myself what I could have done. I felt completely lost, and as any depressed child would, I went to school with a smile like nothing happened. That wasn’t the only instance when I dealt with someone who thought about taking their life, all 3 of my siblings have been admitted to mental facilities after making attempts. My father who lived out of state would often have such thoughts as well and so would my mother, but they both try to stay strong for my siblings and me. Looking back, I wish I had gone to someone sooner, at some point I started relying on my counselor and managed to get better. In the year 2022, I moved to Texas with my parents and my eldest sister who suffers from a mental disability, at first everything went well but our finances began to decline and there were days when I didn’t want to go home, but I want to be able to go to college for psychology to help adolescents feel wanted and heard, I want children to feel safe, not feel how I felt when I was younger. I don’t wish to burden my parents by adding more to their plates but I hope to be able to make a difference in someone’s life.

I’m the youngest of four siblings, I lived in a fairly small town called Idaho Falls where I grew up for the majority of my life. I grew up in a home with financial instability and with the responsibility to assist my eldest sister with her disability. My home didn’t feel like home and it affected my mental health severely. There would be times when I would dread going home due to constant arguments about money or other trivial things and despite the chaos, I would bottle up my anxiety and make it seem as though it didn’t faze me. Since my father was away constantly, I didn’t have a father figure to guide me on the right path and I would often neglect my academic responsibilities and suffer the consequences. My mother was the main breadwinner of the house and I didn’t see her often either as she worked for more than 40 hours per week to try and provide for my siblings and me. My mother was constantly taking care of my eldest sister as she was more in need of her care and due to that my other unstable sister accused her of showing favoritism and that brought more strain to our family. My mother also didn’t know much English, she only knew the basic words she would need to ask for the simplest of things but even so, it was difficult for her to have important conversations with people. My anxiety would often affect my studies and I would ask to leave early from class. I'm grateful for the teachers that helped me pass to the next grade but my attendance was greatly affected and I lost credit due to my negligence. My relationship with my older siblings was immensely strained and on numerous occasions, I would find myself in the middle of an argument with them over insignificant things. Every one of my siblings has been admitted to a mental facility due to self-harm or suicide attempts, and that only brought more tension in our house to the point I too started self-harming and had thoughts about ending it all. However, my mother and eldest sister were the main reasons why I would try to better myself despite feeling unimportant and useless. Throughout my freshman and sophomore years, I would feel lonely while sitting with a group of people I had known since my junior high years, but I would feel more at ease with them than I would with the people who were my flesh and blood. With the help of therapy, I managed to repair the broken bond I had with my siblings and it made me look at life a little differently. I moved to Texas and while everything went well at first, our finances began to decline again and that only restarted the conflict between our family. During the rest of my sophomore year, I made friends fairly quickly due to the school being quite small but I felt out of place, I was shy and the new friends I made were well-known, athletic, eccentric and outgoing, the complete opposite of me. My sister and I would rely on each other to make sure that there was some sort of stability in the house. I still struggle with my mental illness but I am slowly starting to love myself and I will strive to help those who have the same experiences as I and hope to help those in need.

I’m the youngest of four siblings and I grew up in a home with financial instability and with the responsibility to assist my eldest sister with her disability. My home didn’t feel like home and it affected my mental health severely. There would be times when I would dread going home due to constant arguments about money or other trivial things and despite the chaos, I would bottle up my anxiety and make it seem as though it didn’t faze me. Since my father was away constantly, I didn’t have a father figure to guide me on the right path and I would often neglect my academic responsibilities and suffer the consequences. My mother was the main breadwinner of the house and I didn’t see her often either as she worked for more than 40 hours per week to try and provide for my siblings and me. My mother was constantly taking care of my eldest sister as she was more in need of her care and due to that my other unstable sister accused her of showing favoritism and that brought more strain to our family. My mother also didn’t know much English, she only knew the basic words she would need to ask for the simplest of things but even so, it was difficult for her to have important conversations with people. My anxiety would often affect my studies and I would ask to leave early from class. My relationship with my older siblings was immensely strained and on numerous occasions, I would find myself in the middle of an argument with them over insignificant things. Every one of my siblings has been admitted to a mental facility due to self-harm or suicide attempts, and that only brought more tension in our house to the point I too started self-harming and had thoughts about ending it all. However, my mother and eldest sister were the main reasons why I would try to better myself despite feeling unimportant and useless. With the help of therapy, I managed to repair the broken bond I had with my siblings and it made me look at life a little differently. My other sister and brother have started their lives with their own families and near the end of my sophomore year, my mother, eldest sister and I moved to Batesville, Texas with my father to be closer. Although everything went well at first, our finances began to decline again and that only restarted the conflict between our family. There would be days when we would eat nothing but beans and rice, and my sister and I would rely on each other to make sure that there was some sort of stability in the house. I still struggle with my mental illness but I am slowly starting to love myself and I will strive to help those who have the same experiences as I and hope to help those in need.