Manage Appeals
Petition Type: New
ID: 5663
Submitted: April 29, 2019 at 5:22:30 PM
First Name: Nicholas
Last Name: Mamic
Student Number: 20056896
Email: 16nm54@queensu.ca
Degree Program: BASC
Plan: unspecified
Level of Study: 2
Appeal Category Detail: Request to remove all grading in a course or courses
Petition Letter
Petition Letter: I am appealing to eliminate my grading in courses attended in Fall 2018 and Winter 2019.
Upon returning to Queens after my first year, I hadn¿¿t yet noticed the deterioration of my mental health. I had lost interest in most studies, social activities, and general maintenance of health. Upon retrospection, I noticed these problems slowly building since the start of 2018. By October of 2018, I found myself rarely attending lectures, rarely studying, and rarely making any effort to keep up with schoolwork. I didn¿¿t even consider the implications of such neglect, as I wasn¿¿t even focused on basic hygiene, social behavior, proper diet, or any care for my body, let alone my mental state. It was at this point that I suspected I had some sort of mental deficiency. I continued this deterioration of mental state, as reaching out for help felt like a mountain to climb; an intimidating struggle, as I was not yet ready to accept any sort of mental illness as the cause. By late November, I found myself struggling to get out of bed or find enjoyment in any activity. Suicidal thoughts were infrequent but arising nonetheless, and I was ready to head home after completely disregarding my final examinations.
After arrival, I found no solace in my familiar environment, and started to see a counselor to figure out what was going on. At this point, he proposed that I might have depression. I was only able to meet twice with this counselor before heading back for the Winter 2019 semester. After the initial return to my house in Kingston, I isolated myself in my room with my thoughts. I grew apathetic towards even helping myself and had no intention of pursuing any studies at all, despite being enrolled in 4 courses. As suicidal thoughts had grown to the point where I would ponder in bed for hours on end on various events surrounding my inevitable death, I decided to book an appointment with the Queens mental health services, but they could only accommodate me more than 3 weeks after my initial call. I didn¿¿t intend to live that long and was ready to kill myself when I called my parents for the last time. Luckily, they convinced me otherwise, and booked a ticket for me to fly home the day after, on January 28th. The next day I saw a doctor and started treatment with SSRI¿¿s.
I have been in recovery for Major Depressive Disorder for almost 3 months now and feel ready to deal with tying up loose ends with Queens. I feel as if there is so much more for me to do at Queens, and I would consider retaking courses leading towards a biology major again, however I cannot see myself coming back for at least a year. I first aim to regulate my brain and improve my quality of life and am slowly regaining interest in past hobbies. I have been seeing a doctor and another counselor for almost 3 months, and plan to discuss schooling with her/him or vice versa at a future date.
Upon returning to Queens after my first year, I hadn¿¿t yet noticed the deterioration of my mental health. I had lost interest in most studies, social activities, and general maintenance of health. Upon retrospection, I noticed these problems slowly building since the start of 2018. By October of 2018, I found myself rarely attending lectures, rarely studying, and rarely making any effort to keep up with schoolwork. I didn¿¿t even consider the implications of such neglect, as I wasn¿¿t even focused on basic hygiene, social behavior, proper diet, or any care for my body, let alone my mental state. It was at this point that I suspected I had some sort of mental deficiency. I continued this deterioration of mental state, as reaching out for help felt like a mountain to climb; an intimidating struggle, as I was not yet ready to accept any sort of mental illness as the cause. By late November, I found myself struggling to get out of bed or find enjoyment in any activity. Suicidal thoughts were infrequent but arising nonetheless, and I was ready to head home after completely disregarding my final examinations.
After arrival, I found no solace in my familiar environment, and started to see a counselor to figure out what was going on. At this point, he proposed that I might have depression. I was only able to meet twice with this counselor before heading back for the Winter 2019 semester. After the initial return to my house in Kingston, I isolated myself in my room with my thoughts. I grew apathetic towards even helping myself and had no intention of pursuing any studies at all, despite being enrolled in 4 courses. As suicidal thoughts had grown to the point where I would ponder in bed for hours on end on various events surrounding my inevitable death, I decided to book an appointment with the Queens mental health services, but they could only accommodate me more than 3 weeks after my initial call. I didn¿¿t intend to live that long and was ready to kill myself when I called my parents for the last time. Luckily, they convinced me otherwise, and booked a ticket for me to fly home the day after, on January 28th. The next day I saw a doctor and started treatment with SSRI¿¿s.
I have been in recovery for Major Depressive Disorder for almost 3 months now and feel ready to deal with tying up loose ends with Queens. I feel as if there is so much more for me to do at Queens, and I would consider retaking courses leading towards a biology major again, however I cannot see myself coming back for at least a year. I first aim to regulate my brain and improve my quality of life and am slowly regaining interest in past hobbies. I have been seeing a doctor and another counselor for almost 3 months, and plan to discuss schooling with her/him or vice versa at a future date.
Academic Plan
Academic Plan: I expect the path to recovery from major depressive disorder to be slow. I am slowly increasing the amount of exercise I do, making an effort to be social, and am pushing myself to pursue hobbies for pleasure again. Getting to this point has been an extraordinary effort, however I am slowly seeing improvement. When I return to Queens, I plan to start by taking half a course load, and by continuing the personal growth outlined prior. I will set up regular appointments with a counselor and doctor before I start my semester, on a weekly basis if possible. I intend to disclose my efforts with counselors and heed their advice on how to progress through my degree.
Documentation
Professional Letter Detail: My documentation will include an off campus physicians note from my doctor and counselor.