Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To the Associate Dean (Academic),
I am petitioning to late drop courses from multiple semesters throughout my academic career that I was not capable of completing to my best capacity at the time. Within my time at Queen??s I have had significant struggles with my mental health and wellness which deeply affected my performance in school. I would like to appeal three classes from the Fall 2020 semester, one class from the Winter 2021 semester, two classes from the Fall 2021 semester, and two classes from the Summer 2022 semester.
Before beginning the fall 2020 semester, I was prescribed e-citalopram and lorazepam to help manage depression and insomnia I had been experiencing. The medication helped for a bit, however, about mid-way through the semester I began to experience a plateau followed by a decline in my mental health where I began feeling myself falling back into old thought patterns and habits. After reaching back out to my family doctor I was referred to a psychiatrist who immediately changed my medication right around exam season. Both the physical and emotional side effects of the medication were too much for me to handle but I was told they were normal and would eventually subside. Due to the side-effects, however, I was not able to complete my exams and final assignments to the best of my ability and reached out to my professors. Some professors gave me extensions and accommodated me while others were not able to (leading to some failed and some passed courses). I failed ANAT 100, PHGY 215, and CHEM 281 this semester and would hope to drop..
In winter 2021 I continued to reach out to my psychiatrist and convey to her that I did not feel my medication was working for me, as well as my performance in school, however I was not given any additional support. I was discharged soon after and felt hopeless and unheard by my doctors leading me to stop taking any medication. Once again, I reached out to my instructors letting them know I was struggling and requesting any extensions possible. Some instructors were able to accommodate me while others weren??t, leading me to fail one of my courses, PHGY 216.
During the fall of 2021 I began struggling significantly with substance abuse and suicidality. Toward the end of the semester I made my way over to student wellness, scared I may hurt myself. Here I was provided with resources such as a regular counselor to meet with weekly, a referral to a Psychiatrist, and a Letter of Accommodation to help me get accommodations and/or extensions for the semester to help my grades. Unfortunately, there was lots of confusion surrounding my Letter of Accommodation both on my end and on the end of the instructors and I managed to get different accommodations for different courses based on the Letter of Accommodation and as such I managed to pass some but not all of my courses. I failed BCHM 218 and CHEM 281 this semester which I hope to drop
After the winter break I continued with my courses in Winter 2022 hoping I would be able to quickly bounce back, however, I was still struggling significantly and unable to cope or keep up with school. With the help of my counselor and my partner I decided to drop my courses late in the semester in order to take time to focus on working on coping skills and healing myself. I decide it's best for me to take time off and come back better, rather than fail yet another semester worth of courses. It is here that I began seriously thinking and talking about my substance use with my therapist and doctors (who I now truly feel comfortable with and that I can trust) and began practicing harm reduction in order to reduce my use and hopefully stop abusing. I have finally stopped drinking daily but still struggle with binge drinking. I am being given tools to help me cope and continue to work on bettering myself
In Summer 2022, school began and I had made it my mission to do well this semester, knowing I can do better than the last 2 years. I managed to do well and pass a course with C??s (a failed course I retook) and was working on academic skills such as writing papers, critical analysis, and more (through Student Academic Success Services). I did well until about July where I hit a relapse and I began to spiral downhill again. Once I noticed and accepted how this was affecting my health and grades, exam season was already around the corner and multiple overdue or upcoming assignments. I decided to do my best with the time I had and even considered reaching out to my instructors for extensions. Unfortunately I had gotten way too overwhelmed with the amount of work I was behind on, and honestly felt embarrassed and ashamed I wasn't able to do better. After speaking with my therapist I was able to get back on track with my work and do my best with what time I had left in the semester, but unfortunately the struggles I had this semester set me back enough that I failed 2/5 of my courses. I failed RELS 131 and DEVS 220 this semester which I hope to drop
I am now being properly treated for my medical illness and I am able to understand where my feelings are coming from, and learn how to cope with and treat this both in therapy, with medication, and in my free time. I have a safety plan in place which I can turn to or give to a supportive peer to help me through the toughest days, including healthy coping mechanisms, crisis lines, friends to call, and more. I am also meeting with my therapist on a weekly basis where we speak about my symptoms this week, why I am experiencing them, and how to cope with it. I now understand and accept my issues with substance use and abuse, and thus am now better equipped to deal with cravings and relapse. I make sure to keep my therapist updated on how I have been feeling regarding my cravings and we work together in finding ways for me to combat them with healthy coping mechanisms. I have found many of these to help significantly and I am actively using harm reduction methods and healthy coping skills daily in order to keep myself healthy and safe and to help myself break this cycle. I am regularly taking medication that works for me and keep in touch with my psychiatrist with updates to let him know if there are any changes. My psychiatrist is one I trust and who listens to how I feel. I have also developed an academic plan, outlining the courses I plan to take the following 2 years in order to complete my degree. In following my plan, I am working with Queens Student Accessibility Services and my psychiatrist in order to receive accommodations. This serves as a preemptive measure to support me in case of any future relapses, meaning I will not get as overwhelmed or ashamed of the work that needs to get done. Rather, I will be able to give myself the time I need to finish any assignments to the best of my abilities without overwhelming stress. This plan I have in place exemplifies that I am both equipped to deal with my mental health and keep myself safe in every aspect, and that I have ample support and resources to continue with my academic career. I am deeply appreciative of you taking out the time to consider my circumstances and requests.
Thank you,
Haneen Saleem