Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: My name is Tabitha Vautour; I am looking to appeal a late drop of all of my fall term courses. I have type 1 Bipolar Disorder and was experiencing episodes of mania and depression frequently throughout the fall term. Symptoms of my disorder that I was experiencing throughout the fall term include: lack of sleep, irritability, anxiety, lack of focus, racing thoughts, distractibility, poor decision making, auditory hallucinations, suicidal thoughts, etc. I have required multiple academic considerations for extenuating circumstances throughout the fall term, and almost all of them have been for this ongoing issue. On October 27th, I was told by my health professional that I was in a state of psychosis, and was experiencing a mixed episode; I was required to take three weeks off of school. My symptoms at this time were auditory hallucinations, believing people could read my mind, severe anxiety, irrational thoughts, and thoughts of suicide. With this being said, hearing voices constantly made it difficult to concentrate, and the thoughts of suicide were overwhelming. My grades began to plummet and I was feeling more and more unmotivated each day. Around a week after my psychosis diagnoses I drank bleach in an act of attempted suicide, I was then kept in the hospital for around a week. The symptoms I experience make it extremely difficult to concentrate and focus on my studies, some days I am even unable to leave my home. Symptoms such as the feeling of hopelessness, anhedonia, depressed mood, and auditory hallucinations make it difficult to study and attend class. I have been prescribed a host of medications; most of them are sedatives, antipsychotics, and antidepressants. These too come with side effects that make it difficult to attend class. For example, the sedatives make me extremely tired, to the point where I fall asleep in lecture no matter how much I slept the night before. Other side effects of my medications include nausea and vomiting, worsened suicidal thoughts, dizziness, etc. making it difficult to concentrate and leave my home. Overall, my condition has effected my performance in school tremendously, and after the attempt I have made on my life, I feel as though I need to defer my program and perform this late drop so that I can go home (to where my psychiatrist and therapist are) and focus on improving my mental health.