Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: Veronica Tuason
25 Rachett Rd.
Markham, ON.
L6E1W5

Associate Dean (Studies)
Dunning Hall ¿¿ First Floor,
94 University Avenue
Queen¿¿s University
Kingston, Ontario Canada
K7L 3N6

12 June 2016

To Whom It May Concern:

I¿¿m writing to appeal to waive the requirement to withdraw for a year.

During my course of study at Queen¿¿s, my doctors and I have noticed that November of the Fall semesters become a very hard time for me to concentrate on school and perform at my best. My Lupus becomes harder to deal with and I usually suffer from a flare and something like seasonal depressive disorder during that time. During this school year, I experienced a flare up that was quite disabling. I had joint pains that would disable me from walking and my wrist joints also disabled me from doing my work and going to class. I was also not able to hand in assignments on time because sometimes my professors required me to hand in physically and my friends or classmates were not able to help at the time. I would often have to ask my housemates to help me open my medicine bottles or support me to my room as well. My chest was also a big problem as I have started a new treatment and frequently suffered from Peri Carditis ¿¿ the swelling of the lining of the heart, which debilitated my breathing, and I couldn¿¿t walk or get out of bed due to being out of breath easily as well as putting a strain on my chest and heart. After having a check up with my Lupus doctor, we found that my hemoglobin count was low which explained why I felt like fainting or felt unwell; I could not lift my limbs because they hurt, and I was tired often. We also found out that I am anemic which also explained my lack of energy and getting tired and cold often. Thus, my doctors and I have decided to start a new Intravenous treatment called Benlysta for me that is effective for patients who have CNS (Central Nervous System) Lupus and who have had a history of Lupus affecting the brain, which I have had as well as getting onto iron pills.

This relatively new drug will hopefully help with enabling me to work and function at 100 instead of 60 or 50. My doctors and I hope to see improvements in both my mental and physical health as we suspect that in November when the days get shorter and the weather gets colder, it affects my mental health. Anxiety and depression are also symptoms of Lupus as well, and my doctor has advised me to look for a councilor to help me throughout the year.

I hope to be starting my treatment soon and my doctors and I hope that this new drug will enable me to succeed in my studies at Queen¿¿s. They are now closely monitoring my mental health as well because it seems that it is closely related to my flares. I will be going back and forth from Queen¿¿s to Toronto once a month to do my treatment as well as have check ups with my doctor so that she can assess how I am doing. My doctor, parents, and I have made a plan that we hope will enable me to continue my studies as well as ensure the stability of my health. With this, I am really hoping I am able to be given a chance to start my studies fresh and truly show my full potential at Queen¿¿s.

Thank you so much for your time and understanding.

Sincerely,

Veronica Tuason