Throughout much of my life, I have struggled with mental health, which has created a passion in me to advocate for those who also have encountered mental health struggles. Throughout much of my journey, I struggled with having a poor relationship with food and no respect for my own body; this included not only what I put into my body but also the things I did to my body. The last ten years have been a long journey of discovering how to properly treat both my body and my mind. I have learned that it is okay to enjoy food and not feel guilty when I stop thinking about calories. I have started to cook meals that not only satisfy my body nutritionally but also foods that I genuinely enjoy. Meals have become a time to laugh and bond with friends and family rather than a time to be fearful. I continue to work hard to eat three balanced meals a day and not ignore my body's cries for food. I have learned to give up my late-night binging in exchange for mental and physical rest. I could not have imagined the impact that this change would have on my mental and physical health.Throughout college, I went through periods of time where I did better or worse maintaining these healthy habits but I had many people who supported me. I have also learned the art of using exercise as a healthy outlet, rather than a punishment for myself. I used to force myself to go for long and unenjoyable runs because I felt that I had to earn the food I ate. Now, I have learned to genuinely look forward to and enjoy my time running outside. I have made adjustments in my lifestyle and started listening to my body. Instead of following rigorous and unhealthy workout routines, I have started to create patterns of healthy exercise mixed with healthy rest for my body. I continue to work out several days per week, but I no longer feel as though I have failed if I have to miss a day or two. Throughout college, my love for exercise has grown, and continues to grow, as I constantly push myself to be the best version that I can be, both mentally and physically. These changes in my lifestyle are the reasons that I am still here today and one of the reasons that I am so passionate about advocating for mental health and the needs of all those who are affected by it. I remember all of the years I spent hating myself and my body, so I deeply empathize with all young people who struggle with similar feelings. Healthy eating and working out are things that I not only brought into my own life but that I introduced into the lives of all those whom I work with. Mental and physical health are intertwined and I feel spreading the importance of a healthy lifestyle will make a difference in the lives of so many young people.

This May I graduated from Taylor University in social work with a psychology minor; I began a master’s in social work at Michigan State University this May. With this degree, I am planning on working as a high school social worker and/or a therapist for adolescents and kids struggling with mental health. I spent my final semester at Taylor working in a high school and coming alongside teens that were struggling in various ways, many of them being mental health related. Throughout my high school and college experience I struggled a lot with anxiety and depression and continue to in many ways. I frequently had panic attacks, struggled with self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and many other difficult things that come with mental health problems. Because of my own struggles with mental health, I aspire to make a positive impact on the world by working with and supporting high schoolers who are struggling. I am seeking to do this by spreading awareness of mental health and creating safe spaces for high schoolers to talk. Mental health is an area that is still often overlooked and/or not taken seriously and I am seeking to change that. As a future social worker, I look forward to expanding knowledge about mental health and creating a world where children and adolescents will know that there is support around them and that everyone is allowed to struggle with mental health. I want to allow a safe space where people can truly work through the experiences that have shaped them and led them to where they are. People often turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as self-harm, so I am seeking to intervene and offer alternative coping mechanisms. As a future social worker, I believe that all people have inherent dignity and worth no matter what situation they are in. In my final practicum, I got to see how many students were willing to speak up about their struggles with mental health when they knew that they had a space free of judgment and consequences to go to. When I was struggling, I felt guilty because I had a “good life” and did not think I was allowed to be depressed. It took well into college and my social work degree to see all of the flawed ways that I viewed life and myself. Unfortunately, many people never make it to this point and instead live a life constantly believing that they do not deserve help. I aspire to challenge these thoughts that so many people struggle with. Many deep conversations and countless hours of counseling are why I am still here and much healthier today, so I plan to make a positive impact by working with people who are in similar situations. Although I still struggle, I am over six months clean from cutting and I got to come alongside struggling high schoolers every day for the last few months. I felt completely alone in high school and that it something that I want to prevent other high schoolers from feeling. I seek to create a world where young people can feel safe talking about and expressing how they feel. People should not be ashamed of their thoughts and feelings, so now I am seeking to provide that space for them to be completely open. Had I had that space in high school I may not have fallen so far down in depression, yet I am grateful that it led me down the path that I am on and that I will be able to reach so many people who are struggling because of it.

I am a senior social work major (with a psychology minor) at Taylor University and start a social work master’s program at Michigan State University this summer. I am currently interning with a high school social worker for my undergraduate and will also be in a high school all next year for my master’s. My passion lies in working with high schoolers who suffer from various degrees of mental health struggles; my passion for this stems from my own experience with mental health in my family and wanting to spread awareness of this issue. My first experience with mental health was witnessing my mom struggle with depression and anxiety in her life. She had grown up in a hoarder’s house and spent most of her childhood and adulthood taking care of my grandmother and uncle who both cannot take care of themselves. She is the strongest person I know, but I have seen how the mental illness of her mom and brother ate away at her and fed into her own depression. This dysfunction inhibited my siblings and me from establishing any relationships with my mom’s side of the family or learning what healthy boundaries in a family looked like. I also experienced mental illness personally. Throughout high school and the first few years of college, I struggled a lot with anxiety and depression. A close friend of mine planted thoughts in my head of not being good enough or worthy of love, and I began to deeply believe it. I had frequent panic attacks and many sleepless nights in high school dreading school in the morning. Eventually, I started seeking control over my life by cutting my sides, not realizing that this was the beginning of an addiction that I struggle with to this day. That, and counting every calorie I ate became my way to gain control over my life. Things improved in college for a while, but eventually, I fell into an even deeper depression. My cutting became more frequent and more intense, and I began fantasizing about overdosing on my anti-depressants. Despite being a dependable person, I began sleeping through my evening work shifts and often dinner too. I lost all motivation to do anything or go anywhere besides class. However, I had developed a strong support system that knew my thoughts and fears; this was something that I lacked in high school. Many deep conversations and countless hours of counseling are why I am still here and much healthier. Although I still struggle, I am over six months clean from cutting and I get to come alongside struggling high schoolers every day. I felt completely alone in high school and not allowed to be depressed. When I began to study social work and see my flawed views on life. I learned that I did not have to justify my feelings or have deep trauma to struggle with depression. My experience with mental health has led me to work with children and adolescents who are struggling in that same way. I seek to create a world where young people can feel safe talking about and expressing how they feel. I don't want people to be ashamed of their thoughts and feelings, so now I provide that space for them to be completely open. Had I had that space in high school I may not have fallen so far down in depression, yet I am grateful that it led me down the path that I am on and that I will be able to reach so many people who are struggling because of it.

My name is Paige Kelso, and I am currently a senior at Taylor University. I graduate in two weeks with an undergraduate degree in social work and a minor in psychology. I also start my master’s program in about two weeks at MSU for social work. I am aware that when people think of healthcare, they do not typically think of social work, however, occupational therapists and social workers are very closely related in how they work with people and serve communities. Social workers focus on the empowerment of people and communities and approach situations from a strengths-based perspective. They focus on a holistic view as they help clients target all the moving parts in a situation. As a social worker, I specifically want to work with mental health. I am currently an intern social worker in a high school and plan on returning to this setting once I have my master’s degree. Back when I was in high school, I struggled a lot with mental health and felt deeply alone. I came from a good, Christian family and did not think that I was allowed to struggle with mental health because I had a “perfect” life. As depression and anxiety began to take over my life I struggled with my self-worth, with eating, overexercising, self-harm, and eventually struggling with wanting to end my life. Without too many specifics, this is why I ended up in the field of mental healthcare. I have a passion for working with kids and adolescents that are struggling with mental health. For decades mental has been overlooked and not taken seriously; this has thankfully begun to change in recent years. I am seeking to work with teenagers on their thoughts and feelings and how to “rewire” their thinking into healthier paths. First and foremost, I want people to feel listened to and to have their mental health acknowledged. Throughout high school and much of college, my mental health felt insignificant and unprioritized, despite it negatively impacting every area of my life. I had a lot of negative thoughts that held me back and a very skewed view of life. I want to intervene in the lives of youths so that they can redirect those thoughts and feelings. I seek to ensure that all adolescents are able to see the beauty and value of life. As a social worker, I want to help people discover their strengths and acknowledge the areas in which they can grow. I believe that God put me on this path for a reason; not only to improve the lives of people, but potentially save lives as suicide rates continue to rise.

An attribute that I consider unique about myself is my passion for mental health, specifically in adolescence. I am currently about to graduate from Taylor University as a social worker with a minor in psychology, and I start my master’s degree in social work at MSU in a few weeks. Although mental health is becoming more recognized, it is still something that is often overlooked or not taken seriously. I have had my own experiences with mental health and had it overlooked for so long. My own experience with mental health has created a passion in me to advocate for those who also have encountered struggles with their mental health. In high school, I began to experience symptoms of both anxiety and depression in a way that deeply impacted my life and how I saw myself. I fell a slave to a lot of unhealthy coping mechanisms, and I struggled deeply with my self-image. Like many other high schoolers, I partook in self-injurious behaviors such as cutting, which left me feeling guilty because I had a “good life”. I blamed my thoughts and behaviors on “being sad” or having a “bad day” because mental health just was not talked about. To me, depression and anxiety were only for people who had deep trauma in their life; other than that, mental health was irrelevant. This line of thinking is far too common. My experience in college completely reformed my thinking and my view of life. It fostered my view on mental health and attributed to my growing uniqueness. I am unique in the way that I actively seek out high schoolers who are weighed down by mental health. I have lost count of the number of people who have told me that I should not go into this because it will be too hard and I will be burnt out. However, these comments only reinforce my belief that this type of help is heavily needed. Many people and places simply ignore or overlook mental health because of fear of how large the problem is, but from my personal experience, I know how much of a difference that one person can make in someone’s life. For me, all it took was one person to sit down with me, tell me my feelings were valid, and that they genuinely wanted to hear them. This opened up hundreds of conversations in my life and eventually led me to be able to confidently own my mental health and use it to help others. I am currently an intern social worker at a high school and dream of having a full-time job like this. I seek to create a world where young people can feel safe talking about and expressing how they feel. I don't want people to be ashamed of their thoughts and feelings, so now I provide that space for them to be completely open. Had I had that space in high school I may not have fallen so far into depression, yet I am grateful for my story and how it now motivates me to work with others facing mental health struggles. I feel that God has given me this opportunity to pour back into my community and truly use my experiences to shape a better society moving forward.

Throughout much of my life, I struggled with mental health, which has created a passion in me to advocate for those who also have encountered mental health struggles. When I was in high school, I felt that I was completely alone. I experienced symptoms of both anxiety and depression in a way that deeply impacted my life and how I saw myself. I fell slave to the need to cut myself in order to gain some control of my life. I started to hate myself in high school, as many young girls do, and food became something that I had to earn; I began to see myself wishing that God would kill me in my sleep. These thoughts continued to darken and peaked during my first few college years. In college, I had a lot of things to work through and spent countless hours in counseling and having deep conversations with people. My experience with mental health has led me to work with children and adolescents who are struggling in that same way. I am currently an intern social worker at a high school and dream of the day I can have a job like this full-time. I seek to create a world where young people can feel safe talking about and expressing how they feel. I don't want people to be ashamed of their thoughts and feelings, so now I provide that space for them to be completely open. Had I had that space in high school I may not have fallen so far down into depression, yet I am grateful for my survival story and that it now motivates me to help work with others. Because of my own struggles with mental health, I aspire to make a positive impact on the world by working with and supporting high schoolers who are struggling. I am seeking to do this by spreading awareness of mental health and creating safe spaces for high schoolers to talk. Mental health is an area that is still often overlooked and/or not taken seriously and I am seeking to change that. As a future social worker, I am looking forward to expanding the knowledge about mental health in communities and creating a world where children and adolescents will know that there is support around them. I want to allow a safe space where people can truly work through the experiences that have shaped them and led them to where they are currently. People often turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms, as I did with self-harm, so I am seeking to intervene and help offer alternative ways to cope. As a future social worker, I believe that all people have inherent dignity and worth no matter what situation they are in. In my current practicum, it has been a neat experience to see how many students are willing to speak up about their struggles with mental health when they know that they have a space free of judgment and consequences to go to. When I was struggling, I felt guilty because I had a “good life” and did not think I was allowed to be depressed. It took well into college and my social work degree to see all of the flawed ways that I viewed life and myself. Unfortunately, many people never make it to this point and instead live a life constantly believing that they do not deserve help. After I complete my schooling, I am planning to return to the high school setting and challenge these thoughts that so many people struggle with.

I am currently a social work student at Taylor University and am starting a social work master’s program at Michigan State University this May. The thing that inspires me to get involved in my community is my passion for mental health and trauma advocacy and more specifically the lack of trauma-informed care. I have seen far too many children and teens become labeled as bad or disruptive due to no one understanding mental health, or what trauma-informed care is. Without a proper understanding of mental health or trauma, many children and teens are never given the chance to be seen as more than a problem. This has motivated me to create changes in systems so that these children are given a real chance at success. Children are dismissed or mislabeled due to unresolved trauma, and that takes away that child’s inherent dignity and worth. The fact that I can use my degree and work to change the way that society views mental health is something that I find highly inspiring. Over the last ten years of my life, I have gotten involved in quite a few areas in my community where I have had the opportunity to spread some awareness for mental health before I officially graduate. In high school, I was involved in various volunteer opportunities such as coaching and other alike things. This allowed me to grow my passion for working with people. Throughout college though, I stayed involved with the surrounding community by volunteering as a youth group leader for three consecutive years. In this setting, I was able to grow deep relationships with high schoolers and help them understand what it looked like to value their mental health. I walked alongside them as they not only grew stronger in their faith but also as they grew more confident in themselves and recognized the importance of taking care of themselves. Back in my hometown, I volunteered with local Boys and Girls Clubs, teaching healthy habits and life skills to many children. I had the opportunity to connect with many children who came from tough backgrounds and spread love and compassion among their community. I also co-coached a boys’ skill-building, running group where I was able to make an impact on the individual lives of several boys that summer. I ran alongside boys as they learned teamwork and healthy habits and pushed them to challenge themselves in many healthy ways. These various things that I have been involved in have given me the opportunity to connect with people and walk alongside them in different areas of life. This is essentially what I am hoping to use my social work degree for, only on a much larger scale. Each new way that I get involved in the communities around me inspires new and unique ways to continue my passion for mental health. I had the opportunity to get to know people from all walks of life, which drives my heart toward people.

Throughout much of my life, I have struggled with mental health, which has created a passion in me to advocate for those who also have encountered mental health struggles. In high school, I began to experience symptoms of both anxiety and depression in a way that deeply impacted my life and how I viewed myself. I began to pick at the back of my hands in class, frequently crying over fear for the next day, and eventually, I fell slave to the need to cut myself to gain control of my life. I started to hate myself in high school, as many young girls do and food became something that I had to earn. I began to see myself wishing that God would kill me in my sleep. These thoughts continued to darken and peaked during my first few college years. In college, I had a lot of things to work through and spent countless hours in counseling and having deep conversations with people. They, and God, are the reason that I made it through college and am on track to graduate this May. When I was in high school, I felt that I was completely alone. Not one person knew that I struggled with cutting or anything else for that matter. I felt guilty because my life was "perfect" and I had no reason to be depressed. In college, I began to study social work and see all of the flawed ways that I viewed life. I learned that I did not have to justify my feelings or have a crappy home life to struggle with depression. Throughout college, my passion for helping others who were experiencing problems with mental health helped me to keep pushing. My experience with mental health has led me to work with children and adolescents who are struggling in that same way. I am currently an intern social worker at a high school and dream of the day I can have a job like this full-time. I seek to create a world where young people can feel safe talking about and expressing how they feel. I don't want people to be ashamed of their thoughts and feelings, so now I provide that space for them to be completely open. Had I had that space in high school I may not have fallen so far down into depression, yet I am grateful for my survival story and that it now motivates me to work with others. Because of my struggles with mental health, I aspire to make a positive impact on the world by working with and supporting high schoolers who are struggling; this includes spreading awareness of mental health. Mental health is an area that is still often overlooked and/or not taken seriously. As a future social worker, I am looking forward to working to change that and expand the knowledge about mental health in communities. I want to allow a safe space where people can truly work through the experiences that have shaped them and led them to where they are currently. People often turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms, and I seek to intervene and help offer alternative ways to cope. As a future social worker, I believe that all people have inherent dignity and worth no matter what situation they are in. In my current practicum, it has been a neat experience to see how many students are willing to speak up about their struggles with mental health when they know that they have a space free of judgment and consequences to go to. After I complete a master’s degree, I am planning to return to the high school setting to create more spaces like this.

My name is Paige Kelso, and I am currently a senior at Taylor University. For the last four years, I have been studying social work and psychology, which led me to have a passion for advocating for mental health. Currently, I am finishing up my degree by completing my senior practicum (internship) in a high school. I have had the opportunity to talk to and work with many students who are struggling with substance misuse. Once I graduate, I will be starting my master’s in social work at Michigan State University this summer. This master’s degree will allow me the ability to work with and counsel adolescents (or any other age) who are struggling with substance misuse. Alcoholism runs in my family, so I have witnessed how addictions can ruin relationships and damage people’s lives. As a social worker, I seek to work with clients as they fight addiction and potentially rebuild some relationships or other things that they have lost in their life. I plan to make a positive impact on the world by working with and supporting high schoolers who are struggling with and/or know someone struggling with addiction by spreading awareness on mental health. Mental health is an area that is still often overlooked and/or not taken seriously. As a future social worker, I look forward to working to change that and expand the knowledge about mental health in communities. I want to allow a safe space where people can truly work through the experiences that have shaped them and led them to where they are currently. People often turn to substances as a coping mechanism for something else going on in life; I am seeking to intervene and offer alternative ways to cope. As a future social worker, I believe that all people have inherent dignity and worth no matter what situation they are in. Specifically, those who have issues with substance misuse need people who support them and are consistently rooting for them. It has been a neat experience to see how many students are willing to speak up about their struggles with substance misuse when they know that they have a space free of judgment and consequences to go to. After I complete a master’s degree, I am planning to return to the high school setting to create more spaces like this. I plan to help people recover from substance misuse through the use of therapy and working through what a person is experiencing and has experienced. This offers people a person they can trust and turn to and allows them to have accountability. In addition to that, I plan to be heavily involved in advocating for mental health awareness in school communities, which includes substance misuse. This would involve hosting events and facilitating conversations about mental health. And finally, specifically in the school setting, I think that it is important to recognize that people often need several different kinds of support. This will lead me to ensure that I know what substance misuse resources and services are in the community and to connect students to additional supports.

I am currently a social work student at Taylor University and hope to start my master's program this summer. The thing that inspires me to get involved in my community is my passion for mental health and trauma advocacy and more specifically the lack of trauma-informed care. I have seen far too many children and teens become labeled as bad or disruptive due to no one understanding mental health, or what trauma-informed care is. Without a proper understanding of mental health or trauma, many children and teens are never given the chance to be seen as more than a problem. This motivates me to create change in systems so that these children are given a real chance at success. Children are dismissed or mislabeled due to unresolved trauma, and that takes away that child’s inherent dignity and worth. The fact that I can use my degree and work to change the way that society views mental health as a whole is something that I find highly inspiring. Over the last ten years of my life I have gotten involved in quite a few areas in my community where I have had the opportunity to spread some awareness for mental health before I officially graduate. In high school I got involved through National Honors Society and other various things that were going on. Throughout college though, I stayed involved with the surrounding community by volunteering as a youth group leader for three consecutive years. In this setting, I was able to grow deep relationships with high schoolers and help them understand what it looked like to value their mental health. Back in my hometown, I volunteered with local Boys and Girls Clubs, teaching healthy habits and life skills to many children. I co-coached a boys’ skill-building, running group where I was able to make an impact in the individual lives of several boys that summer. These various things that I have been involved in have given me the opportunity to connect with people and walk alongside them in different areas of life. This is essentially what I am hoping to use my social work degree for, only on a much larger scale. Each new way that I get involved in the communities around me inspire in new and unique ways to continue my passion of advocating for mental health. I have the opportunity to get to know people from all walks of live, which drives my heart for people.

I am currently a social work student at Taylor University and hope to start my master's program this summer. I got drawn into social work because of my passion for mental health and trauma advocacy and more specifically the lack of trauma-informed care. I have seen far too many children and teens become labeled as bad or disruptive due to no one understanding mental health, or what trauma-informed care is. I would like to address this issue by working in school settings where I can listen to and support people who have never been understood before. I am currently interning with a high school social worker and once I get my master's I hope to return to a similar setting. I think trauma-informed care is essential yet still unknown in many school districts. Without a proper understanding of mental health or trauma, many children and teens are never given the chance to be seen as more than a problem. Children are dismissed or mislabeled due to unresolved trauma, and that takes away that child’s inherent dignity and worth. I am seeking to be in a setting where I can work to change the way that society views mental health as a whole. My goal as an overall social worker is to facilitate change in the overall systems. I believe that this change starts with individuals. I want to allow a safe space where people can truly work through the experiences that have shaped them. I want students to feel safe and heard no matter what their home life may look like. I have seen various areas where this has had a trickle-down effect on a community's view of mental health as a whole, and think it is necessary in all communities. I also hope to educate on trauma-informed care and help communities understand the difference that it can make. I hope to develop a deeper knowledge of trauma and what it looks like to be trauma-informed. As an undergrad college student, I have not yet had the opportunity to work with clients dealing with trauma on all levels, but I would like to learn the skill of how to implement trauma-informed care in areas where it is not a known or respected practice. This is an experience that will come with the completion of a master's degree in social work. Although I hold little power currently to make any large societal changes, I am still pushing and advocating for mental health in all of the settings in which I currently am involved.

Growing up I always felt the expectation that I would go to college, but I did not fully understand all that came with that. In high school, I began to realize just how expensive going to a university was going to be. It was important to me that I would attend a Christian school after high school so that I could continue to develop my relationship with God, but that came at an even higher cost. I decided on Taylor University after checking out many schools; this was mostly due to the fact that I had more scholarships to go there and therefore it would be slightly less expensive than other Christian colleges. Over the last four years of college, I grew a passion for social work and advocating for mental health. Mental health is something that I have struggled with and been affected by my entire life, and I realized that I could use that as fuel in helping other people who are affected by mental health. It is important to me that mental health becomes more than just a stigma and that people affected by it have places to turn to for help. This is an area in society that is often overlooked, but it is crucial to understand. I am searching for my place in helping individuals and communities grow in their understanding and care for mental health. I am blessed to say that my parents had the financial means to help me pay for my undergraduate, but I still had to take out thousands of dollars in loans along the way. Being in social work, I am pursuing my master's degree in order to work with people in the way that I feel called to. I am planning to start a master's program this summer, but am struggling to see how I will be able to afford it. This scholarship would help make a dent in the current loans that I have, making it much easier for me to pursue my master's degree. I am comfortable with the fact that I will be making very little money most of my life, but I am hoping to not start off in a deep hole of debt. I did not have any idea what I wanted to do with my life when I started college and I truly believe that God laid this path out before me to spread love and awareness for mental health.

I am a senior Social Work major, and a Psychology minor at Taylor University, so I have had a lot of opportunities to ponder on and learn about the effects of eating habits on mental health. I believe that the mind and the body are very closely related, meaning how we eat significantly impacts how we feel. I believe that for someone to have a healthy mind and body, they must be giving it healthy "fuel" to use. When someone's body is starved of needed nutrients, such as protein, the body has to focus on fueling what is necessary. A good example of this in women is when someone stops getting their period after some time without eating enough food. The body had to conserve its exergy and use it elsewhere. Our bodies were not built to run off of sugar or carbs alone; they need a foundation of all sorts of foods to fully meet all of its need. Not only does a poor diet cause the body to have to work much harder to accomplish everyday tasks, but this also puts great stress on our minds. An unhealthy diet can lead to poor mood or decreased mental function and sometimes can lead to various other mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. Because of this, I believe that a healthy diet is a good starting point to look at when people are experiencing various mental or physical health problems. I have noticed a large correlation in my own life between diet and health. First of all, I am a fairly active person who likes to work out, but when I get into a pattern of unhealthy eating things become much more difficult. I find myself tiring much quicker during activities such as running, as well as noticing decreased muscle growth with other exercises. Overall, my body tends to feel sluggish and drained when I am not being intentional about eating a well-balanced diet. In addition to working out, I also notice the small everyday activities being affected. I get massive headaches when I skip meals; I have learned that this is my body's way of telling me that I am giving it what it needs. Finally, where I see my health affected the most by my eating is how I am doing mentally. When I go through periods of eating unhealthy, I notice a significant increase in my depression and anxiety. My mind seems to switch into "dim mode" where I am not fully processing or experiencing what is going on around me. I struggle to focus on things or people and find myself getting agitated very quickly. Typically, within a day or two of improving my diet, I begin to notice significant improvements in my mood. Mental health is what I am passionate about and I find it very fascinating how interrelated diet and mental health are. I hope to someday be able to dive even deeper into this connection so that I educate the people that I work with on the importance of a healthy diet.

My mom has been one of my strongest supporters throughout my entire life. My mom and I are a lot alike in many ways, which has been a blessing and a curse. My mom encountered a lot of trauma throughout her childhood, which left her struggling with a lot of mental health issues, including anxiety and depression; these are two things that I have also struggled with most of my life. When I was a young kid, I struggled with separation anxiety as well as a lot of generalized anxiety, but my mom understood what I was going through. She was the reason that I had so much confidence in life and God. She worked with me as I was growing up to teach me my worth and where it comes from, rather than letting society dictate my value. My mom taught me to listen to my heart and that all of my feelings are valid even if they do not feel rational. I am currently studying social work and psychology to help those who struggle with mental health. My mom was the first person that taught me how to do that. I thank my mom for the empathetic heart that she gave me and for the dedication, she demonstrated by walking by my side throughout my life so far. My mom is also why I am such a strong academic student to this day. When I was young I struggled a lot with reading. I had extra classes and tutoring to help, but the biggest person who helped was my mom. She used to read with me every single day, even as I cried and complained that it was too hard. She would make deals with me by reading every other page and having me read the ones in between. She did this with me for years, and as I became a stronger reader I grew to deeply love reading and exploring everything that books have to offer. She taught me how to preserve even when academics get hard. As I progressed through the grades she consistently reminded me of how proud she was of me and where I was at. I graduated high school with a 4.0 and am currently about to graduate from college with a 3.8 before moving on to a master's program. All of my dedication and work ethic stem from all of the ways that she never let me give up as a child. I have her to thank for how far I have come and for my continued passion for education.

Struggles with mental health have deeply impacted my life and experiences. Throughout most, if not all, of my life, I have lived under the shadow of anxiety and depression. I experienced anxiety as a child but did not really recognise it as that. It was my stomach aching most nights when it came time to go to bed, always forcing my younger brother to sleep in my room and talk to me while I fell asleep to make me feel safe, and having panic attacks (usually seen as a "temper tantrum") whenever I was left alone. Going into middle and high school I started to experience more of these symptoms and many others including the need to pick at the back of my hands in class, have exact schedules that I always followed, frequently cry myself to sleep over fear for the next day, and eventually falling slave to the need to cut myself in order to gain control in my life. I started to hate myself in high school, as many young girls do and food became something that I had to earn. I began to see myself wishing that God would kill me in my sleep. At the time, I saw this all as symptoms of being anxious (because who was I to have actual anxiety or depression). Things improved in college for a while, but eventually, I fell into an even deeper depression than I had ever known. My cutting became more frequent and more intense, and I became fantasizing about overdosing on my anti-depressants. I had always been dependable, but began sleeping through my evening work shifts and often dinner too. I lost all motivation to do anything. Throughout all of this though I had a strong support system who knew my thoughts and fears; this was something that I lacked in high school. I have since spent countless hours in counseling and having deep conversations with people. They, and God, are the reason that I made it through college and am on track to graduate this May. When I was in high school I felt that I was completely alone. Not one person knew that I struggled with cutting or anything else for that matter. I felt guilty because my life was "perfect" and I had no reason to be depressed. In college, I began to study social work and see all of the flawed ways that I viewed life. I learned that I did not have to justify my feelings or have a crappy home life to struggle with depression. Throughout college, my passion for helping others who were experiencing problems with mental health helped me to keep pushing. My experience with mental health has led me to work with children and adolescents who are struggling in that same way. I am currently an intern social worker at a high school and dream of the day I can have a job like this full-time. I seek to create a world where young people can feel safe talking about and expressing how they feel. I don't want people to be ashamed of their thoughts and feelings, so now I provide that space for them to be completely open. Had I had that space in high school I may not have fallen so far down in depression, yet I am grateful for my survival story and that it now motivates me to help work with others.

Throughout much of my life, I have struggled with mental health, which has created a passion in me to advocate for those who also have encountered mental health struggles. Throughout much of my journey, I struggled with having a poor relationship with food and no respect for my own body; this included not only what I put into my body but also the things I did to my body. The last ten years have been a long journey of discovering how to properly treat both my body and my mind. I have learned that it is okay to enjoy food and not feel guilty when I stop thinking about calories. I have started to cook meals that not only satisfy my body nutritionally but also foods that I genuinely enjoy. Meals have become a time to laugh and bond with friends and family rather than a time to be fear. I continue to work hard to eat three balanced meals a day and not ignore my body's cries for food. I have learned to give up my late-night binging in exchange for mental and physical rest. I could not have imagined the impacts that this change would have on my mental and physical health. Without the people who supported me on this journey, I would not be in the healthy place I am today. I have also learned the art of using exercise as a healthy outlet, rather than a punishment for myself. I used to force myself to go for long and unenjoyable runs because I felt that I had to earn the food I ate. Now, I have learned to genuinely look forward to and enjoy my time running outside. I have made adjustments in my lifestyle and started listening to my body. Instead of following rigorous and unhealthy workout routines, I have started to create patterns of healthy exercise mixed with healthy rest for my body. I continue to work out several days per week, but I no longer feel as though I have failed if I have to miss a day or two. My love for exercise has grown, and continues to grow, as I constantly push myself to be the best version that I can be, both mentally and physically. These changes in my lifestyle are the reasons that I am still here today, and one of the reasons that I am so passionate about advocating for mental health and the needs of all those who are affected by it. I remember all of the years I spent hating myself and my body, so I deeply empathize with all young people who struggle with similar feelings. Healthy eating and working out are things that I not only brought into my own life but that I introduce into the lives of all those who I work with. Mental and physical health are intertwined and I feel spreading the importance of a healthy lifestyle will make a difference in the lives of so many young people.