My name is Mia and I am an Autistic mental health warrior. When I was in fourth grade, I spent a lot of time with an interesting doctor who asked me a lot of questions. At the end of many sessions, I left feeling exactly the same, but my parents had relief and a name for what made me different - Autism. Nothing changed much, but as I got older, I didn’t quite fit. I developed friendships with a few people but I preferred to stay home, where I knew the sounds and the smells, where my bed and safe space was always there for me. In 10th grade, I started finding everything so overwhelming. My biological father had cut off our relationship six years prior and began raising children with his new wife. While my stepdad had been my daddy since I was five, I struggled to understand why I wasn’t enough for my biological father. Socializing was exhausting. School was getting harder. I would cry, overcome with emotions I couldn’t sort out or put to words and wouldn’t be able to think or speak during a breakdown. I started having dark thoughts and shared them with my therapist. She supported me while I told my parents. We cried. My mom stayed with me in the hospital for three days. We built a safety plan and changed my medication. I started feeling better. I started talking more, labeling my feelings, looking to pinpoint triggers. I worked on using my senses to ground me. I started feeling better. The next year, we moved from New York to Georgia with only a few months left in my junior year. It was exciting at first but also scary - away from the smells, the sounds, my safe space. I found myself in a bad relationship with a person who used my mental health as a tool, a weakness to prey on. I’m so lucky to have parents who helped me recognize warning signs and support me in breaking off the relationship and refocusing on my mental health. I pulled myself back out with the help of my doctor, friends, and family. I started college this Fall still nervous about leaving my safe space but determined to continue to build me into who I want to be. I have joined a sorority with a platform important to me - supporting strong girls. I am double majoring in Nursing and Psychology. I want to go on to become a Nurse Practitioner focusing on Psychiatry. My experiences have given me a reason, a voice. I want to make it possible for other children and teenagers to find their purpose on the other side of their mental health struggles. My name is Mia and I am an Autistic mental health warrior.

My name is Mia and I am an Autistic mental health warrior. When I was in fourth grade, I spent a lot of time with an interesting doctor who asked me a lot of questions. At the end of many sessions, I left feeling exactly the same, but my parents had relief and a name for what made me different - Autism. Nothing changed much, but as I got older, I didn’t quite fit. I developed friendships with a few people but I preferred to stay home, where I knew the sounds and the smells, where my bed and safe space was always there for me. In 10th grade, I started finding everything so overwhelming. My biological father had cut off our relationship six years prior and began raising children with his new wife. While my stepdad had been my daddy since I was five, I struggled to understand why I wasn’t enough for my biological father. Socializing was exhausting. School was getting harder. I would cry, overcome with emotions I couldn’t sort out or put to words and wouldn’t be able to think or speak during a breakdown. I started having dark thoughts and shared them with my therapist. She supported me while I told my parents. We cried. My mom stayed with me in the hospital for three days. We built a safety plan and changed my medication. I started feeling better. I started talking more, labeling my feelings, looking to pinpoint triggers. I worked on using my senses to ground me. I started feeling better. The next year, we moved from New York to Georgia with only a few months left in my junior year. It was exciting at first but also scary - away from the smells, the sounds, my safe space. I found myself in a bad relationship with a person who used my mental health as a tool, a weakness to prey on. I’m so lucky to have parents who helped me recognize warning signs and support me in breaking off the relationship and refocusing on my mental health. I pulled myself back out with the help of my doctor, friends, and family. I started college this Fall still nervous about leaving my safe space but determined to continue to build me into who I want to be. I have joined a sorority with a platform important to me - supporting strong girls. I am double majoring in Nursing and Psychology. I want to go on to become a Nurse Practitioner focusing on Psychiatry. My experiences have given me a reason, a voice. I want to make it possible for other children and teenagers to find their purpose on the other side of their mental health struggles. My name is Mia and I am an Autistic mental health warrior.

My name is Mia and I am adopted. When I was five, my mom met my daddy. I know that sounds weird to most people, but to me, it just makes sense. Before then, my mom raised me and I visited my biological father sporadically. But, when I was five, my mom met my daddy. He didn’t start out as daddy, though. At first I had a Jon. He took me swimming, helped me roller skate, made my bologna sandwiches just the way I liked. He became Daddy Jon. We watched my favorite movies. He married my mom. He bought me a necklace promising to love me forever as his first baby even when he and my mom brought home my little sister. My biological cut off our relationship completely. Daddy Jon became daddy. When I was in fourth grade, I spent a lot of time with an interesting doctor who asked me a lot of questions. At the end of many sessions, I left feeling exactly the same, but my parents had relief and a name for what made me different - Autism. My daddy read books, talked to doctors, and worked hard to advocate for me - at school, in activities, in my health. As I got older, I didn’t quite fit. I developed friendships with a few people but I preferred to stay home, where I knew the sounds and the smells, where my bed and safe space was always there for me. Despite being different, my daddy loves me just like my mom. He adopted me legally. I took his name like my mom and little sister. In 10th grade, I started finding everything so overwhelming. Socializing was exhausting. School was getting harder. I would cry, overcome with emotions I couldn’t sort out or put to words and wouldn’t be able to think or speak during a breakdown. I started having dark thoughts and shared them with my therapist. She supported me while I told my parents. We cried. I was hospitalized for three days and when I came home, daddy let me sleep in bed with him and mom. I started feeling better. I started talking more, labeling my feelings, looking to pinpoint triggers. I worked on using my senses to ground me. I started feeling better. The next year, we moved from New York to Georgia with only a few months left in my junior year. It was exciting at first but also scary - away from the smells, the sounds, my safe space. I found myself in a bad relationship with a person who used my mental health as a tool, a weakness to prey on. I’m so lucky my daddy helped me recognize warning signs and supported me in breaking off the relationship and refocusing on my mental health. I pulled myself back out with the help of my doctor, friends, and family - especially my daddy. I started college this Fall still nervous about leaving my safe space but determined to continue to build me into who I want to be. I have joined a sorority with a platform important to me - supporting strong girls. I am double majoring in Nursing and Psychology. I want to go on to become a Nurse Practitioner focusing on Psychiatry. I am so thankful for my family who have supported me, especially my daddy. I get to be me, because of him. My name is Mia and I am adopted.