Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: I am requesting an academic appeal due to extenuating circumstances that impacted my mental health over the past year and impeded me from effectively participating in my academic activities. My mental health deteriorated at beginning of the 2021 winter semester. This directly coincided with me starting to take Isotretinoin, a medication used to treat severe acne. I was aware that I would be at risk of depression and anxiety, and I tried to stay focussed and alert to my mental health, however, I started struggling. As my condition worsened, I did nothing to help alleviate or change how I was feeling. As the 2021 winter semester progressed, I was experiencing worsening anxiety. I mistakenly felt I could manage it on my own and believed that once I was off this medication, I would begin to feel like myself again. In September of 2021, I stopped taking Isotretinoin and I returned to Queen's for the 2021 fall semester ready to start my final year. Unfortunately, even though I wasn't taking the drug anymore, I was still experiencing the same mental health issues that I had previously developed. At this point, I had still not told anyone about my situation or made any formal action to help deal with the problem at hand. Throughout the fall semester, my mental health was further deteriorating, and it got to the point where I felt too overwhelmed and anxious to effectively participate in my academic activities. In early November, I made my first attempt to seek assistance for these issues and I called the Queen's student services and booked an appointment with a counsellor. I had one appointment that I felt was entirely ineffective, so I called back and organized a future appointment with a new counsellor. I had multiple calls with my new counsellor, Sevda Akilli, who attempted to assist me in communicating with academic advisors, however, I was unsuccessful. These feelings of overwhelming anxiety caused me to make many irrational choices, not attending/participating in my classes was certainly one of them. While I had feelings of anxiety before, the severity had drastically changed, and my worsening anxiety was causing me to question every decision I made as it was no longer just a little voice in the back of my head. At the end of the winter semester, I had essentially chosen to ignore the reality I was facing, and I carried on trying to appear to be normal and attending school. I was alone and avoided addressing my mental health issues with my family, friends, or academic advisors. I was no longer speaking with Sveda. While I had planned to disclose all of my struggles to my family over the Christmas break so that they could assist me in creating a plan for both my mental health and academics, I never did. I returned to Queen's, enrolled myself in a lesser course load, and planned on speaking to advisors to get back on track. However, I once again fell into a bad cycle in which I was harming my mental health and falling behind in my academics. Over the reading week, I finally opened up to my family and friends. They have been helping me seek professional help for my mental health issues and to get into contact with advisors regarding my academic standing.
Since speaking to my physician regarding my situation, we have begun to organize third-party professional counselling for myself going forward. I have been in regular contact with those around me who are aware of my circumstance, who are monitoring me and making sure I'm not feeling too overwhelmed or anxious. This week I have spoken with multiple academic advisors who alongside my professors are helping me to devise a manageable academic schedule going forward. I am going to do everything in my power to ensure that I do not fall into a harmful cycle again and am optimistic that with the help of support, from the staff at Queen's, professional counselling and my inner circle of family and friends I can end this semester on a positive note. I am excited to be feeling like myself again and am looking forward to finishing my studies. Going forward I know that I have resources available to me, which I know that I can lean on whether it be through Queen's student services or private medical assistance.