More hurtful friendships than wholesome ones have crossed my life. If most of the time friendships are superficial and selfish, why would I need friendships?. Scary right?, for a teenager to think this way, so young and so ignorant, yet so hurt. This was me about 6 years ago, 11 years old, who at the time had a background of a chain of unfortunate friendships. Coming to the United States now added a language and cultural barrier between me and making friends. Now, this is sad right? however, I do not regret going through this, now it is time to see the positive side of the story. I realized I was utilizing my past experiences to create new, wholesome friendships, I did not want to admit I wanted real friendships because I always told myself I did not need them, but I was unconsciously looking for external support and long-lasting friendships. After re-developing my social skills, I have found the best friendships I could ever ask for, they have shown me what it means to trust someone and to be there for them, not with words, but with actions, something I never saw in the past. This experience from one extreme to the other allowed me to feel what it is like to be pessimistic and optimistic. It showed me a whole new world that I never thought could exist, it exponentially enhanced my mental health, and it made me try new things that I would have never tried, such as, running for officer in clubs (even being the president and vice president in many), being involved in my community, and being more active. Friendship means growth, learning from mistakes, coming out of your comfort zone, and being the best version of yourself.

Imagine you are in a position where you are stressed and do not know what to do, where the things you delicately programed are going the opposite as planned and you are about to leave it all and give up. I am sure you will not have a hard time imagining it as we all have went through similar situations of extreme stress. The key to overcome this is one of the most important behaviors regarding success and progress; Patience. My introduction was my very own encounter with stress itself that happened many months ago and recently stopped. Because of my demanding high school classes, my extracurricular activities in and out of school, and my part-time job, my life was getting harder and harder to keep up with. My part-time job was the hardest part of my day. I knew I just had a few months left to gather the money I needed for my grandmother to be in a decent hospital in my country of birth, Venezuela, and after that, my school and general life will get easier. With Patience, you learn how to view things from a different perspective, stay calm, analyze your options, your situation, and to accept that some things are unchangeable. I told myself to be patient and reminded myself why I was doing it, for my future and my grandmother. I kept fighting every day, being patient, and the day finally came, my grandmother was able to stay in a hospital that would take care of her, I was able to quit my job, and focus all my energy in school and my future.

Mental health illnesses have become a common issue in our society nowadays. The most active feelings while dealing with mental health issues are worthlessness, anhedonia, and apathy. What can we do to solve this?. Of course there will never be only one solution to this issue because we are talking about the brain and it’s psychology, a problem with this magnitude will be resolved with a process involving many solutions. One solution to this issue, inside this chain of solutions, is educating people in order for them to spot any signs of a mental illness developing in a person or their loved ones. If we educate our society about this topic and help them to recognize them, it not only will make them aware of their own mental health issues but other people’s too. Once we educate our youth about this topic, they will be the external help that those people going through mental illnesses need. Because when you are going through a mental health illness, you are completely blinded, and without external help it will be extremely difficult to overcome it. Let our future generations be that external help, with the sources and information they need.

Motivation is one of the hardest feelings to maintain and keep constant to, for me, it has been an arduous experience. One day, when I found myself at my lowest point, I knew I needed help. I reached out to my psychologist and she told me to find something in my life that is worth working for and focus my actions around it, in my case, it is my family back in my country of birth. I came to the United States 5 years ago from Venezuela, leaving my family and closest friends. Now, because of the actual situation of the country, the only thing keeping my family alive and healthy is us, here in United States. There is no food and medication in Venezuela, we send them monthly boxes full of these in order for them to survive in such dangerous and ineffective country. Around 65% of the income I obtain from my job goes to them. They are the reason I wake up every day, go to school, deal with honors, AP classes, and work hard. After 5 years of not seeing them and almost loosing them due to the dangers of Venezuela, I realized they are my biggest motivation, because one day, I will be able to give them everything they deserve, have them by my side, and never leave them again.

Music is such an essential and active part of me that choosing one song among the thousands of genres and thousands of songs was not simple. This song brings back happy memories from my childhood and at the same time motivates me to keep going. Every time I hear this song it reminds me of my younger self, when I wanted to be a chemist, biologist, veterinarian, doctor, and ballerina all at the same time, those were my only costumes for Halloween. This song motivates me to not disappoint or let down my younger self, it reminds me, every time I want to give up, that in the end it will be all worth it. This song is “Halfway There” by Big Time Rush.