When I was in eighth grade, my older brother was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Before his diagnosis, he was the person I looked up to most. As his illness progressed, I watched him slowly become someone I barely recognized. I watched him struggle to tell the difference between reality and the hallucinations in his mind. I listened as he begged me to take his pain away, knowing there was nothing I could do. For a long time, I grieved the life I thought he would have. I thought about the places he could have gone, the goals he could have reached, and the version of himself that seemed to disappear. What I did not realize was how much those experiences were affecting me, too. Living with so much uncertainty left me carrying severe anxiety and depression. My brother's illness taught me that life can change overnight. There would be periods when everything felt calm and normal. When he was taking his medication and doing well, our family could finally breathe. Then, without warning, everything could shift. The house would fill with screaming, tears, and fear. We never knew what the next day would bring. That uncertainty shaped the way I see relationships. Even now, I struggle to let people get too close to me. I often feel afraid that if people see the real me, they will leave. My anxiety makes me question my place in relationships and overthink things that others might brush off. I find myself waiting for the next bad thing to happen, even during good moments. Learning to trust people and feel safe with them has been one of the hardest parts of my healing journey. Over time, I sought therapy and began learning how to cope with the trauma I had carried for years. Through both my brother's experiences and my own, I learned how lonely mental illness can be. I learned that healing is not something we do alone. I have learned the importance of caring for myself in small, everyday ways. Spending time in the sun, moving my body, and making space for hobbies all help support my well-being. But I have also learned that sometimes those things are not enough. Sometimes our brains need additional support through medication, therapy, community resources, and family. Sometimes it takes an entire group of people working together to help one person feel okay. These experiences are the reason I am pursuing a degree in social work. I want to help individuals and families navigate the reality of mental illness with compassion and support. I know what it feels like to sit beside someone you love and wish you could take their pain away. I know what it feels like to carry that weight yourself. My goal is to become the kind of person who helps families feel less alone, especially during the moments when the future feels uncertain. If there is one thing my experiences have taught me, it is that people heal best when they are supported, understood, and reminded that they do not have to carry everything on their own.

Pursuing my Master of Social Work degree as a Black woman has been both rewarding and challenging. More than anything, it has required me to constantly balance the many roles I hold in my life. I am a mother, a full-time employee, a student, and a woman who is trying to build a career rooted in service. There are days when it feels like I am carrying all of those identities at once, and finding balance can be incredibly difficult. The biggest challenge I have faced is motherhood while pursuing higher education. My son will always come first, and I often find myself trying to be fully present for him while also meeting deadlines, attending class, and staying focused on my long-term goals. There are many nights when I complete assignments after he goes to sleep and many moments when I question whether I am doing enough in any one area of my life. The reality is that graduate school does not happen in isolation. For me, it happens alongside packing lunches, managing schedules, working full-time, and showing up every day as a parent. Another challenge has been finding guidance and mentorship. I did not always have a clear picture of what I wanted my career path to look like or how to get there. It took time, self-reflection, and a lot of trial and error to understand the direction I wanted to pursue within social work. At times, that process felt lonely. There is comfort in having someone who has already walked the path you are trying to navigate, and I often wished I had more of that support. Over time, I have learned to seek out connections, ask questions, and trust my own ability to find my way. I am still learning, but I no longer feel like I need to have every answer figured out immediately. Finances have also been a significant challenge. One of my goals is to minimize the amount of debt I take on to complete my degree. Because of that, I continue to work full-time while attending school. While I am grateful to have employment that allows me to support my family, balancing work and graduate school can be exhausting. As I look ahead to practicum placements, I feel anxious about how I will manage practicum hours, coursework, full-time employment, and motherhood all at once. It is a lot to think about, and I would be lying if I said I was not worried. What keeps me going is remembering why I started. I chose social work because I care deeply about people and believe in helping individuals and families navigate difficult circumstances. I want to create meaningful change in the lives of others, especially those whose experiences are often overlooked or misunderstood. I also want my son to see what perseverance looks like. I want him to know that even when something feels difficult, it is still worth pursuing. This journey has not been easy, and there are moments when it feels isolating. However, I am learning that I do not have to do it alone. I am becoming better at leaning on my village, accepting support, and giving myself grace. As a Black woman pursuing a master's degree, I carry both the weight of these challenges and the strength to overcome them. Every class completed and every obstacle overcome brings me one step closer to the social worker, mother, and role model I hope to be.