Petition Letter
Dear Associate Dean,
I am appealing to drop ECON 212, 222, 290 and 250 (Fall, 2021) due to extenuating circumstances that were out of my control. These circumstances did not allow me to pass these courses and deeply affected my academic performance. I was unable to drop these courses before the fall term deadline, as these circumstances unexpectedly arose after the deadline of November 1, 2021. I am hoping to get the above courses dropped, as I was unable to anticipate the circumstances which occurred.
The extenuating circumstances was that my mother had been admitted to Homewood Health Guelph for treatment of her mental health issues including; severe depression, anxiety and addiction of alcohol, and both prescribed and non prescribed drugs. She was admitted on November 23, 2021 to Palmerston General Hospital and was transferred to Homewood on November 25, 2021. Throughout her life she had been dealing with mental health issues, creating a cyclical pattern of relapse and readmission to Homewood. I had grown up my whole life with my mother and obviously as a small child and teenager this affected me deeply. As a child my mother??s mental health issues shaped and affected me the greatest, as she was supposed to be my provider and support. In school I struggled to succeed in my elementary classes during her substance abuse and relapse periods. As I grew older, I began to gain more agency and control over my life, I was able to be away from home longer and live more independently. By creating space between myself and my mother I was able to dedicate myself and be successful in highschool and to be accepted to Queen??s University. That is what I thought, that I was physically not around and so her problems could not harm me or affect my life. Looking back this was not the case, I was caught in a highly dramatic cycle which severely impacted me during each of her mental health cycles and severe crises. On several occasions, I had to drive on short notice from Kingston to my mom??s home 41/2 hours away to ensure she could attend medical treatment at Homewood health.
I was able to make the difficult choice after the end of the 2021 fall semester, realizing from the stressful situation and my academic performance results that I needed to collect myself and begin healing. It was a hard decision, I??m someone who doesn??t like to step away from my goals, dreams and aspirations. I took a leave of absence from Queen??s for the winter semester. I began the healing process by taking myself out of my busy and chaotic life. I began to travel, to Nova Scotia and then Europe, to give myself time to think, feel and heal. While I was in this process, my mother passed away from an overdose in April.
I am sharing how I have been deeply affected and impacted by my mother??s substance abuse and mental illness over the span of my whole life. How it has reached and impacted every corner of my life. My mother being admitted again to Homewood, on the surface seemed to me like every other time. This was different, she had deep suicidal thoughts and was struggling more than I can ever remember. This was proven to be the case in April.
I am a dedicated, hard working, driven individual and that is what I credit to my success in having the opportunity to go to Queen??s. In my previous two semesters, I obtained respectable grades and was very excited for my career at Queen??s. This is also shown by my ability to pass one of my five courses in the fall term 2021 even with unpredictable family problems and stresses at home. I am a capable student and individual and I would like my personal circumstances to be considered.
My plan to succeed at Queen??s this coming academic year is to continue to see my therapist and to reach out and utilize Queen??s mental health and academic support so I can succeed academically and personally.
I am appealing to drop ECON 212, 222, 290 and 250 (Fall, 2021) due to extenuating circumstances that were out of my control. These circumstances did not allow me to pass these courses and deeply affected my academic performance. I was unable to drop these courses before the fall term deadline, as these circumstances unexpectedly arose after the deadline of November 1, 2021. I am hoping to get the above courses dropped, as I was unable to anticipate the circumstances which occurred.
The extenuating circumstances was that my mother had been admitted to Homewood Health Guelph for treatment of her mental health issues including; severe depression, anxiety and addiction of alcohol, and both prescribed and non prescribed drugs. She was admitted on November 23, 2021 to Palmerston General Hospital and was transferred to Homewood on November 25, 2021. Throughout her life she had been dealing with mental health issues, creating a cyclical pattern of relapse and readmission to Homewood. I had grown up my whole life with my mother and obviously as a small child and teenager this affected me deeply. As a child my mother??s mental health issues shaped and affected me the greatest, as she was supposed to be my provider and support. In school I struggled to succeed in my elementary classes during her substance abuse and relapse periods. As I grew older, I began to gain more agency and control over my life, I was able to be away from home longer and live more independently. By creating space between myself and my mother I was able to dedicate myself and be successful in highschool and to be accepted to Queen??s University. That is what I thought, that I was physically not around and so her problems could not harm me or affect my life. Looking back this was not the case, I was caught in a highly dramatic cycle which severely impacted me during each of her mental health cycles and severe crises. On several occasions, I had to drive on short notice from Kingston to my mom??s home 41/2 hours away to ensure she could attend medical treatment at Homewood health.
I was able to make the difficult choice after the end of the 2021 fall semester, realizing from the stressful situation and my academic performance results that I needed to collect myself and begin healing. It was a hard decision, I??m someone who doesn??t like to step away from my goals, dreams and aspirations. I took a leave of absence from Queen??s for the winter semester. I began the healing process by taking myself out of my busy and chaotic life. I began to travel, to Nova Scotia and then Europe, to give myself time to think, feel and heal. While I was in this process, my mother passed away from an overdose in April.
I am sharing how I have been deeply affected and impacted by my mother??s substance abuse and mental illness over the span of my whole life. How it has reached and impacted every corner of my life. My mother being admitted again to Homewood, on the surface seemed to me like every other time. This was different, she had deep suicidal thoughts and was struggling more than I can ever remember. This was proven to be the case in April.
I am a dedicated, hard working, driven individual and that is what I credit to my success in having the opportunity to go to Queen??s. In my previous two semesters, I obtained respectable grades and was very excited for my career at Queen??s. This is also shown by my ability to pass one of my five courses in the fall term 2021 even with unpredictable family problems and stresses at home. I am a capable student and individual and I would like my personal circumstances to be considered.
My plan to succeed at Queen??s this coming academic year is to continue to see my therapist and to reach out and utilize Queen??s mental health and academic support so I can succeed academically and personally.