As a person of color who still struggles with anxiety and depression, I can say that it has taken a huge toll on my life. I was diagnosed with depression when I was 14 and was put on medication at 16 due to it getting worse over time. My mental health has always been my number 1 priority to me because I know that it is something that could affect me so much in life. Being Hispanic did not help when I was diagnosed. In the Latinx community, mental health awareness is not very relevant. This makes it harder for Latinx people to go out and seek help due to the backlash that they might face from family or friends. It is unfortunate but people from the Latinx community find help until it's very late. This is the same case with me because my family didn't believe me until they noticed I would go on for days without eating or being present at the moment. I was just honestly a shell of a person. My family found help until I started having panic attacks and saw some actions of mine to be dangerous to myself. Looking back, it makes my heart hurt to see that I needed to get worse mentally, physically, and emotionally so my family can find help for me. This is why, now that I am an adult, I am open-minded toward Mental Health awareness in my community. I believe that everyone should be able to get the help they deserve no matter what they are going through. As I said, I don't think I have overcome my depression and anxiety, but I do know that I have improved from how I coped with it as a child. Even so, I do know that it still affects my relationships and my career aspirations for better or worse. Looking back on my relationships, I do know that my depression and anxiety have taken a toll on how I feel about people. I don't have many friends and its because of how I've been made to think that everyone will eventually leave me. This makes me scared to ever be close to people because it makes me feel abandoned or worthless when people leave me. Even with that mentality, I do try to get out of that mindset and try to talk to people even if it's not to make a strong friendship. I also believe I have improved my mentality by going to therapy which I believe everyone should do. It is a good experience to be able to talk to people who won't judge you. Due to what I have been through with my own depression and anxiety, I aspire to be a person who can help people and especially children by lending them information and resources based on mental health awareness. Currently, I am on the path to be a family social worker but I do plan to be a children's therapist in the future. Mental health is something very important to me, and I wish the best for people who are struggling with any mental health issues. I want to let people know that they are not alone in their struggles, there are many people who care about them.