Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Dear Dean of Studies,

I am appealing the final grade received in MICR 360 during the fall term of 2013 at Queen's University due to extenuating circumstances. I deferred the final exam for MICR 360 until Sept 2nd 2014 due to ongoing health problems that persisted throughout the year.

During the year and this summer I experienced a series of health problems in which some of my grades suffered. On some days my sickness would leave me unable to leave my bed, therefore I provided the needed documentation from a doctor to defer my exam. In winter semester, while trying to deal with my health problems and worrying about applying to graduate school, a family member fell sick. After seeking counseling at the Lasalle center, I was advised to seek further counseling to learn coping skills. I went to counseling and learnt to compartmentalize my family and school life. However, during this time, I was unaware that the stress I was feeling was abnormal. I would wake up in the middle of the night with my heart pounding and shortness of breath. I would wake up feeling restless and would often try to go back to sleep for longer periods of time to be more alert for the day. This fatigue made it hard to go on with my days. I consulted a doctor believing that I may have a vitamin or iron deficiency causing this fatigue. However the doctor did not find anything. The day before my deferred exam, I experienced stress so intense that my heart started beating very fast; I had a lot of difficulty breathing, felt very cold and light headed for a prolonged period of time. I was unaware that these symptoms represented an anxiety or panic attack. After this period I was unsure of what happened to me and tried to continue studying for the exam. The next day while writing the exam I experienced these similar symptoms and could not help but feel like I was going crazy or had a serious illness. The light-headedness and heavy chest persisted after the difficulty breathing passed and this made it difficult to focus on my exam. During the exam, I could only focus on trying to breathe at a normal pace and getting over the light-headedness. After these episodes, I felt very scared and sought out counseling immediately.

During a counseling session, I was told that I was showing signs for anxiety. I was also told that after having the initial attack, the day before the exam, that there is a recovery period. During this recovery period I should have been resting and trying to meditate/ breathe. However, since I was unaware I kept studying and placing high stress upon myself with the confusion of what had just happened and trying to stay awake while my body felt weak. Thus, the second episode during the exam happened since I was unaware with how to deal with this anxiety.

Although this issue is quite new to me, I believe that with counseling I have already improved tremendously. After talking to my counselor I was made aware of breathing activities, and coping mechanisms to practice when I feel an episode coming on. I frequently wake up in the middle of the night with a heavy chest and some difficulties breathing. As of recently I was advised to buy Rescue Remedy as it has been proven to help with these symptoms. By only using this for a week, I can already see a tremendous improvement in my sleep. I was also advised to practice yoga and try to exercise everyday. I have come up with an exercise plan with my psychotherapist involving a 7 minute work out everyday, which I can then increase to doing twice or three times a day as I get more comfortable. My psychotherapist is also going to get in contact with my family doctor to advise the prescribing of Adavan for those instances in which I feel an episode coming on that I cannot stop with these coping mechanisms. I do not believe that this final mark reflects my capabilities as a student. This year I was able to receive marks in the A's and B's, therefore seeing this D was a huge wake up call to needing to get help for my mental health.

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. I have attached a letter from my psychotherapist.