Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Hello,
My name is Cole Wiseman and I'm a first year working towards a Bachelors of Science, with a plan to specialize in Biotechnology. The extenuating circumstances I faced this year include psychological problems and familial struggles. I should start out by saying that my older brother Sean has had significant problems with drug use and has been struggling for sometime, this has heavily affected my family and I for about 2 years now. After a while this repeated cycle of pain and drug abuse caused him to be kicked out of the house and forced to go on to a rehabilitation center. After Sean left, it was around the time I got accepted into Queen's which was a big deal as it boosted my whole family's morale. I came here with a can-do-it attitude and a positive mindset so I would be able to continually do the only thing that would put a smile on my mom's face. As the year progressed I started to struggle more and more with my anxiety and depression. This anxiety and depression stems from being so far away from Dallas unable to be there and console each member of my family when they needed me, which was and is very often. I found that I did well in the beginning managing my work life along with my social life but quickly it began to fall. Around the fall exam period is when the worst of my anxiety started to affect me as I felt like my academic success was directly tied to how happy my parents were, and to some extent it is. I felt overwhelming pressure to do well which led to me mentally cowering in a corner of my own anxiety. After I took my exams I realized I needed something to change or else I would be doing myself a disservice so I made an appointment with a psychologist to discuss my anxiety and depression in which she diagnosed me with general anxiety disorder and prescribed me medication. Long story short, the medication never helped me academically or psychologically. With nothing regarding my mental health changing from last semester and exams nearing I mentally ended up in the same