I went to see Wicked on Broadway with my mom, best friend, and best friend's mom during my freshman or sophomore year of high school. I love Broadway and was excited to see Wicked. The actors were all so talented, and the sets were beautiful. Everything was perfect. Getting to see it with my favorite people only made it better. In High School, I struggled with intense anxiety and depression. I was in the high school marching band, and several of the kids (and most of my section) were negative, toxic, and mean. I struggled to go to school with them. I loved school and still do, but the idea of having to be in the same place as those kids caused me so much anxiety that I was miserable. There was nothing I wanted more than to curl up in a hole and hide from the world. Musicals were one of the few things in my life at this time that brought me joy and made me feel seen. "Defying Gravity" and "For Good" were and are my favorite songs from Wicked. "Everyone deserves a chance to fly" became a kind of anthem for me. I have always wanted everyone to be treated with love and respect, no matter what. I believe that everyone can achieve anything when given the right space and support. I was homeschooled up until high school, and I was amazed how many of my peers were not shown love at home, were bullied, were mean and judged others for little things, or didn't have a real family. It became my job to be everyone's "mom" and love and care for all of them. If they needed help with homework, I was there. Needed shoes for our concert and couldn't afford any? Here are my old ones. Having a bad day and just need a hug? I'll hug you until you let go. Are you afraid to talk to the counselor about stuff going on at home? I'll go with you. Everyone can be and do amazing things. However, if they are not given the right space to grow, they will never be able to fly. I now work with adults with developmental disabilities. I work on their "soft skills" (reading, writing, communication, money counting, etc.) and have gotten to see them grow and improve so much in the last five years. I have been able to see a pair of twins that were labeled as "non-verbal" when I arrived, now never stop talking. They have friends. They tease their peers. They have friends. My clients have goals and dreams. I am creating a place for them to be able to reach those goals. Goals that other people look at and think are silly or impossible and laugh at. I'm creating a place for my clients to be able to fly and be the best they possibly can be. They deserve that chance just as much as anyone else.

I chose Human Services and Psychology as my fields of interest. I have always loved figuring out why people do the things they do, why their brains work a certain way, and how to change the way a brain thinks. I work with adults with developmental disabilities, and learning to understand them and their brains over the last five years has been intriguing, brought me a lot of understanding, and caused me to learn so much about myself. I am able to better help them express thoughts, ideas, and feelings. Over the last five years of working with our clients, I have found that mental health services and resources are lacking in the DD community. There are few mental health services that will accept those with developmental disabilities near us. People also do not realize that those with developmental disabilities often need mental health services or resources. I hope to use my degree to offer free or reduced mental health services and resources for those in the DD community. This group of people has taught me so much love and grace, and being able to give back to them in this way is keeping me motivated in school.

My name is Grace LeMieux, and I am a rising sophomore at Cornerstone University, majoring in Psychology. I have chosen to pursue a degree in healthcare with a focus on mental health because I believe that mental well-being is as important as physical health. I am especially passionate about helping adults with developmental disabilities, a group I currently work with and care deeply about. Throughout my experience working with these individuals, I have seen firsthand how crucial mental health services are for them. Unfortunately, they often face significant barriers to accessing the support they need. Many of my clients require mental health resources, but due to various limitations, they are unable to receive them. This gap in care has motivated me to pursue a career in psychology so that I can directly address these needs. This group of people has taught me a lot about life, love, grace, and myself. I hope to be able to give back to them and make as big of an impact on them as they have on me. My goal is to become a mental health professional who can offer free services to those who cannot afford them. By obtaining my degree, I will be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide effective care and support. I want to ensure that my clients receive the attention and assistance they deserve, which can significantly improve their quality of life. As a woman in the healthcare field, I hope to make a positive impact by advocating for those whose voices are often unheard. Women bring unique perspectives and empathy to healthcare, which can lead to more compassionate and comprehensive care. I aim to use my position to promote mental health awareness and reduce the stigma surrounding it, especially for individuals with developmental disabilities. I also believe that representation matters. By pursuing a career in psychology, I hope to inspire other women to enter the healthcare field and contribute their talents and insights. It is essential to have diverse voices in healthcare to address the needs of all communities effectively. In summary, I have chosen to pursue a degree in healthcare because I am committed to improving mental health services for adults with developmental disabilities. I hope to make a positive impact by providing free mental health care to those who need it, especially those with developmental disabilities, and advocating for greater awareness and understanding. As a woman in this field, I am determined to contribute to a more inclusive and supportive healthcare system. Thank you for considering my application for the Women in Healthcare Scholarship.

It took me a long time to realize I was struggling with mental health. I thought that everyone felt the same way I did. It wasn't until halfway through my sophomore year, when my band director mentioned something about my anxiety in passing that I realized I did have anxiety. Severe anxiety. The longer the year went on, the worse it got. I began to develop severe depression as well. My world was dark, lonely, and exhausting. It was hard to get out of bed, stay awake during the day, sleep at night, hide my pain and fear, and complete basic tasks. When I finally got help halfway through my junior year, my entire world changed. Not overnight, not in a week, and not even in a month, but it did. I was able to function. I started sleeping. I was no longer afraid. My world isn't dark anymore. I find joy in little things again. I lost a lot of friends during that time. It was hard for me during that time to accept the fact that those people were people I no longer wanted to be around and who now wanted nothing to do with me. Those were people that I grew up with and considered best friends and family. It took me a long time to realize that they showed their true selves to me in that time, and the friends that stayed were true. The ones that stayed, I still have to this day. They helped me through some really hard times, and I have helped them. They never judged. We will still hang out, though it looks different now. Now, we go for coffee dates while the kids eat cookies. We watch movies while babies sleep. We plan weddings and baby showers. But they are still there. They still encourage me when I need it. We share our struggles and grow together. I decided that I wanted to have a better understanding of mental health and its effects on our brains. I began taking courses to figure out why I felt the way I did and how to feel better (other than my medicine). Once I was able to figure out WHY I felt the way I did and how to manage my feelings and emotions in healthy ways, I knew that I never wanted anyone to feel the way I had and that I wanted to help keep them from feeling that way. I work with adults with developmental disabilities. They are often underserved and rarely (at least around where we are located) are able to receive mental health services. If they are, they can not afford the services or are unable to verbalize their thoughts and feelings. Last October, I went back to school to study Psychology and Human Services. Upon graduating and receiving my degrees, I plan on offering mental health services and resources to the developmental disability community. If they are part of our workshop, they will receive the services for free, and those who are not one of our clients will get them at a massive discount. The DD community has taught me so much love and grace that I can not think of a better way to give back to them than to offer them these services.

I am the oldest of three children. My siblings and I have always been close and did everything together growing up. We are close to all of our cousins (I am the oldest grandchild of 11) and I babysat all of them growing up. Now that most of them are in middle or high school, they are my "broke best friends". I would give up the world for them. I am also close to my mom. She is my best friend, my supporter, my voice of reason when I'm angry, and my teacher. I was homeschooled my whole life. In 6th grade, we found out that I could dual enroll at the local middle/high school so that I could attend band. In high school, I began attending more classes at the high school, but I took the majority of them at home still. Taking classes at both high school and at home caused a lot of stress and anxiety for me, but I learned a lot about life, and I believe those experiences made me into the person I am now. I also was part of the cross country and track teams in high school. Cross country was one of the things that kept me going when life got hard. Cross country taught me that just because life is hard, I am in control of myself and my choices. It gave me an outlet for frustration. It gave me a group of people who cheered for me, even when I could not cheer for myself. I work at a non-profit training facility for adults with developmental disabilities. We teach them work skills and life skills. My job is to teach all the soft skills: reading, writing, hand washing, fine motor skills, and so much more. I am currently attending Cornerstone University for Human Services and Psychology. I plan on using my degree to give mental health services and resources to my current clients. Due to their disabilities and different abilities, they are often unable to receive mental health services. I have several clients who are considered non-verbal and are unable to speak or don't speak well enough to express their thoughts and feelings. I have others who used to receive counseling but now don't for a variety of reasons. My clients have taught me so much love and grace in the last five years that I want to give back to them. I see them struggling with their anxieties, depression, and other mental illnesses. I know what it felt like when I was struggling mentally, and the idea of other people feeling as lost, scared, and lonely as I did is heartbreaking. I would be able to give our clients mental health services and resources as often as they needed, free of charge to them. I hope to continue giving back to them and to the people who have taught me and given me so much.

Mental health is important to me because it is something I have and do struggle with. In high school, my mental health was at rock bottom. I never want to feel that way again or for anyone else to ever feel that way. The idea that other people feel as lost and lonely and scared as I did is heartbreaking. When I worked at the local high school for about three years as a coach, there were several times I had to report mental health issues (self-harm, alleged abuse in the home, etc.). I had a lot of discussions with kids about their feelings and mental illnesses and found things I could do to help them. As a current college student, mental health is important for me, as when I am having a bad day or struggling to get homework done, it is usually because I am feeling overwhelmed and anxious. Being able to work through and push past those feelings helps me to be a better student and complete my work on time. At home, I advocate for my sister's mental health. While I do not live there any longer, I understand that she has a lot of anxieties and sensory overload issues. I go over almost every day to help her with homework and basic tasks and go to her football games and cross country meets. She often struggles with verbally expressing her feelings and ideas, so we have been working on talking about our feelings and expressing them in a healthy and productive way instead of shutting down and getting upset or angry. At work, mental health is something that needs a lot of attention. I work at a non-profit for adults with developmental disabilities. Our clients are taught job skills as well as soft skills (reading, writing, problem-solving, etc.). Due to our client's different disabilities and abilities, many of them are unable to receive mental health services or resources. Some of them are considered "non-verbal" and are unable to express their thoughts and feelings appropriately or in a way that makes sense to others. Some of them don't have a way to pay for the services. And some don't even realize they could benefit from the services. Upon receiving my degree, I plan on creating a space for my clients to receive the mental health services and resources they need. This service will be through our organization, so our clients can receive the services and resources for free and in a space where people understand them and know them already. This will make them more comfortable and more likely to improve their mental health and will give them a space to just talk or sit when they are upset and need a place to calm down and feel safe.

Mental health is something that I passionate about because it is something that I struggle with. I took classes in high school for cognitive behavioral therapy and behavioral technician classes upon graduating. I have always loved helping others. Knowing how my struggle with mental health made me feel, I have been looking for ways to help others who are feeling the same way, or keep them from feeling that way. Listening to others, helping them find solutions, and addressing emotional and mental pain is something I feel I have always done and enjoy doing. I also work with adults with developmental disabilities at a non-profit. They are a community of people that I adore and have taught me so much love and grace. Many of my clients require mental health services and resources but do not receive them for a variety of reasons. These reasons include not being able to afford them, being written of as "just disabled", or not being able to fully explain their feelings in a way that is needed in a traditional therapy or counseling setting. Upon graduating, I plan on creating the setting that my clients need in order to do well in counseling or therapy, as well as give them the mental health resources needed. I would be able to offer this as a service through my current job. This means that our clients would get free mental health services and resources, as often as they need them. Everyday, I see another person with a need and just think about how I could help them so much better once I have completed my education.

About six years ago, I was a high school sophomore. I was not in a good mental health space and quickly declined as the year went on. I have blocked out most of that year and the next year, and I physically can not remember what happened in those years. The things I do remember, though, are feelings I would not wish on anyone. I became a Drum Major as a Sophomore in the high school band. Drum Major is typically saved for seniors and sometimes Juniors. Sophomores and underclassmen are not supposed to be in "positions of power." I remember seeing the glances and the whispers of my peers as I walked past or into the room. I remember the lies that kids spread. I remember becoming so anxious that I would not go to my own section when we did sectional work and would join a different group because my own section hated me so much. I was miserable. As the year went on and faded into Junior year, my mental health continued to decline. All but two of my friends walked out on me, lies continued; my anxiety increased, and with it, my depression. Everything around me was dark, and I always felt like I was being squeezed or suffocated. I would talk to my band director every day about what was going on and how I felt. Once the self-harm started, I knew that something had to be done. I finally talked to my mom and agreed to see a doctor. I started taking medicine and started feeling better. The darkness wasn't as close, and I began to question if I had even ever really felt the way I thought I did. It all felt so far away and like a bad dream. I couldn't even imagine that I had ever felt like that. After a few months, we decided to increase the dosage of my medicine. At this point, I felt like a person again. I no longer felt like I was living in a dream or had just woken up from a bad dream. I took Cognitive Behavioral Therapy classes and began to understand why I felt the way I did and what I could do about it. It has taken a long time, medicine, and a lot of tears to get to where I am now and overcome the darkness and the pain. I am now able to get out of bed, enjoy my job, go back to school, and so much more. There are still hard days, but there is light and good in the world again. I work at PC Workshop in Paulding, Ohio. We are a training facility for adults with developmental disabilities. Once I graduate with my psychology degree, I am planning on providing mental health services and resources to the developmental disability community. This is an underserved community that has taught me so much love and grace. I want to give them the resources needed to have a successful life and to pay them back for everything they have taught and given to me. They are often denied mental health services for a wide variety of reasons or are written off as disabled and not in need of counseling or therapy. They have been my constant smile and cause of laughter, even on my hardest days. They have taught me more about life than anyone else. I hope to be able to repay them and am so grateful that I get to see them grow and improve every day.

Once I graduate, I plan on building a service for my clients at work. We are a non-profit training facility for adults with developmental disabilities. Our clients are often denied mental health services and resources for a variety of resources. Over the last five years of working in this position and overcoming many of my own mental health issues, I have realized how big of a need for mental health services and resources for my clients. I hope to build services for my clients into their individual plans. This will allow them to get free mental health resources and services daily (or as often as needed). The services would be charged through the county so that my clients get free services, and I would still get paid. This will allow my clients to receive services they might not normally receive or be accepted into. This is something that I am looking forward to and the reason I decided to go back to school. My clients have changed my life for the better and taught me so much. I started this job because it was the first place I felt I truly belonged and could be myself. I have always loved helping others, and this was a great place for me to do that. However, I feel that I need my clients more than they need me some days. They have become my safe space, my constant smile, my encouragement, and have taught me so much patience and grace. They have taught me that it is okay to be yourself and not be afraid to live your life to the fullest, no matter what other people say or think. Being able to give them mental health resources and services is the best way I can think of to give back to them and thank them for everything they have done for me.

I am currently attending Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, MI, for Human Services and Psychology. I work at PC Workshop in Ohio. We are a non-profit training facility for adults with developmental disabilities. My job is teaching soft skills (reading, writing, counting money, etc.), and we go on a lot of different outings and trips. We work on speech, sign language, appropriate behaviors, social cues, and more. Once I graduate, I plan to offer mental health services to our clients. Our clients are often in need of mental health services and resources but are unable to receive them for several different reasons. I have taken Cognitive Behavioral Therapy classes, general psychology, and Behavioral Technician classes. I have had mental health issues myself, and I want to help those around me overcome their own mental health issues. My clients have given and taught me so much, and I want to give back to them. I can not think of a better way than to give them resources for their mental health and help them improve their lives in order to become the best versions of themselves. The biggest hardships or challenges I have experienced and will continue to face are my own mental health and funding. Because I work for a small non-profit, my checks barely cover rent and expenses each month. This makes paying for my tuition hard and a source of stress for me. I do not want a lot of student debt when I graduate, so I have been trying to find ways to save money and work extra-odd jobs to be able to pay for tuition each month. This does not always work, however, and I do have a few loans I will need to pay back. I have gone without a lot of "little things" that I used to not even think about spending money on (new clothes, shoes, coffee dates with friends). I no longer have subscription services so I can afford utilities and my books each semester. The other challenge is my mental health. Working two jobs (one full-time and one part-time) and in school full-time is a lot. There are a lot of late nights and early mornings. It can be mentally draining at times and overwhelming. My anxiety is another thing that can get in my way at times, though this is something I have worked on and am usually able to keep under control.

In high school, my mental health was quickly declining. I do not remember most of my high school experience due to poor mental health and severe depression. I cannot tell you what grade I received in high school; because I do not remember. Once I started taking medication I began to feel a lot better. I can function again. There are still hard days. The anxiety, depression, and impostor syndrome can creep up on me and take hold of me; like a giant hand squeezing my chest. I am currently studying Psychology so that I can understand mental health and illnesses better, and help those who are struggling with them as well. I have had to ask for extensions on homework assignments due to my mental health. There have been times when I felt so overwhelmed and mentally drained that I was unable to complete the assignments on time. I struggle at times with being able to muster up enough motivation to work on assignments. These are the biggest impacts my mental health has on my academic performance. In my personal life, there are times when I do not want to join friends' places, I get incredibly overwhelmed at work, or imposter syndrome kicks in and I struggle to continue with the task at hand. I often overeat or don't eat at all, depending on what kind of mental health day I am having. There are days when I get nothing done and I stay in bed all day or return to bed as soon as I get home from work. There are also "good brain days" where I am able to clean, cook, get homework done, and do basic chores. It can be very frustrating and feel like I am incapable or incompetent at times. I have found that taking a few minutes for myself, walking away from the current assignment, or even going to the bathroom for a few minutes at work, and breaking down why I am feeling the way I am, is helpful. Once I break down why I am feeling the way that I am, I begin writing out a list of positive phrases and affirmations. "I am allowed to feel this way. I am safe. I am enough," and so on. I have found that this helps me to calm down, and not get frustrated with my feelings. When I get frustrated with myself, my mental health only gets worse. I have also found that when I eat gluten, I am more anxious. I try to avoid gluten because I feel that my mental health is more important than eating a few cookies. I have stopped watching certain tv shows because I felt they were having a negative effect on my mental health.

One of the biggest problems I have overcome in my life is my anxiety. While this might not seem like that big of a deal for some people, to me, it was. My anxiety fed my depression, making them both worse. It got to a point where I could not do my job. Learning different ways to manage my anxiety, what triggered my anxiety, and ways I could move past the fear, helped me get my life back. I love my job again. I enjoy going to musicals and football games and concerts again. I am able to spend time with friends and family again. I can go to the store without feeling like the walls are closing in on me. When I feel anxious, I am able to stop and think about why I feel that way, and what to do to move on with my day. I acknowledge my feelings and that they are valid, and then move on. This scholarship will help me give back to my community in many different ways. I work with adults with developmental disabilities. I am currently working towards my bachelor's in Psychology. I hope to be able to give my clients mental health resources and services when I graduate. They are an underserved community due to money issues, being denied treatment due to their disability, struggling with understanding feelings and emotions, and they often don't do well in a typical counseling or therapy setting. My clients have taught me patience, love, acceptance, and that life and its possibilities are limitless. Being able to give my clients counseling or therapy and ways to continue improving their lives is the best way I can think of to give back to them. Because we are a non-profit, my paycheck is just big enough to cover rent and utilities. This scholarship will help me continue my education and limit my student loans and debt. I have a client who participates in Philately. Whenever he talks about his stamps, he talks about how he collects stamps because his dad did. The stamps remind him of his dad and their good times. Philately is a way to keep our memories close. To me, time spent with family and the memories created and shared are some of the most important things in life. Besides being a way to spend time with family or friends and create memories, you can make new relationships through philately. There are many stamp-collecting clubs and online groups, and some people even find pen pals from other countries to send letters and stamps too. This can help you learn about other cultures, engage with people you might not otherwise meet, and find several kinds of stamps that you might not otherwise find or see. Overall, I think that philately is a great hobby to join in and can be incredibly interesting.