I've bee dealing with anxiety since I was a kid. Without having a diagnosis, my childhood and adolescence were chaotic. Horrible in every aspect of basic human development and a nightmare at school, I still wonder how I managed to hold my own all these years. To understand a little bit about myself, I have to tell you about the environment I grew up in and all the madness that surrounded me. I was born into a family that was afraid of going to the doctor, afraid of taking medication, etc. For example, I was about to die in my mother's womb as she was in labor pains and it took several days to decide it was time to go to the hospital. Result? I was born completely purple from lack of air. I lived with my father's family until I was ten years old; if you felt pain, don't worry, have some tea. Literally, that was our medication for anything. Over time, these teas stopped having the desired effect. The chamomile wasn't calming me that much, the passion fruit juice didn't make me sleepy and so on. It was at that moment that I almost went crazy. And I also found out that I had ADHD and Dyscalculia after reading the Percy Jackson books. Basically, all the information I had was on the internet. I understood that just because I couldn't understand math or had a lot of grammar mistakes while writing I wasn't dumb. My brain is different. The process of assimilating all that was complicated because you spend a long period of your life questioning everything about yourself, thinking the worst, and then you just have the answers to why you are the way you are! But hey, I was also self-diagnosing myself, which is very bad. Even knowing that this probable neurodivergence and anxiety that I detected could be true, I kept this information to myself for a long time until I couldn't anymore. I didn't want to be treated any differently, even though I didn't feel like I'm a normal person. Since I was a child I have been passionate about art and culture, so much so that I am a dancer and musical actress. It was my favorite pastime to climb on the couch, grab a hairbrush, and pretend I was at my concert with a legion of fans. But I also have a passion for history and archeology, having heard the most complete absurdities that ever happened in my family and being proud of those who came before me. Preserving what is ours so that future generations will also be proud of our journey. I also can't keep quiet for long and that's why I'm obsessed with international relations and public policy for minority groups. And not least, I love literature, cinema and music. I have particular analyzes for each type of art with criteria that only make sense in my head, involving a little psychology, a lot of humor and a lot of emotion. Do you understand that's to much passion and interest inside one person's mind? Speaking of passion, I would like to complement my journey of self-acceptance after a conversation with my psychologist, Isabella. She helped me realize that I was putting myself in troubled situations where I was the person who came out the most traumatized. I put a lot of energy into something and received nothing in return. Bad way to live, Richely! What makes you happy right now? Do it! Listen to your favorite artist and dance! Laugh a little. I became a new person with her help. I still don't like taking medication, especially to help with my ADHD, but I follow her tips to increase my productivity and I have a support group where we laugh a lot at things only those with ADHD understand. I was able to filter my passions to follow an area of studies where I could explore all my interests dynamically and respecting my limits. I'm really sorry about Mrs. Hayes. In some communities, seeking help for mental illness is seem as weakness and people start to exclude you. I have depression and I haven't told my family. It's been 7 years I've dealing with this illness alone, and sometimes I struggle a lot. The world seems darker, like there is no help to get out of a bad situation and all I want to do is give up. But then I remember the plans I have of winning things. I want to celebrate with my friends, find love, meet new people and learn how to surf. I'm too young and I can destroy Depression' ugly ass. I know I can do this. There are people rooting for me, people like Ethel who lost a fight but want me here living for them. I believe. The struggle is always there, but I have the force of milions. Just like Obi Wan said: "may the force be with you". Oh, they do.