Petition Letter
Dear Dr. Bénard,
I am requesting that the Faculty of Arts and Science waive the deadline for appeals so that I may remedy the academic effects of the extreme collapse in my mental health from the middle of 2014 onwards.
The extenuating circumstances that inhibited my ability to appeal within the Faculty¿¿s original 21-day/1-term deadline, as denoted in my documentation, consisted of the major depressive disorder and chronic anxiety that I developed at the beginning of the Winter 2014 semester. While I was able to work out informal arrangements with my instructors to complete my coursework for that semester, I misapprehended the nature of what would be a serious and prolonged medical condition instead of a temporary period of emotional difficulty. Since the onset of this condition in January 2014, I have been beset with a variety of symptoms including a lack of motivation and/or enthusiasm for either professional or academic activity, diminished energy, chronic fatigue, erratic and unhealthy sleeping and nutrition habits, persistent low mood, recurring periods of acute anxiety leading to anxiety attacks, suicidal ideation, and acute social withdrawal. This has led to a severe reduction in my ability to concentrate, read or write academically, think critically, or use any of the array of higher-level brain functions critical to academic success. In effect, I developed a form of academic post-traumatic stress disorder, to the point where merely picking up books, or hearing other people mention school or careers was enough to trigger a downward emotional spiral.
These factors, in addition to hindering any semblance of academic or social life, also made it next to impossible to maintain the everyday skills needed to submit an appeal and follow through with subsequent deadlines (including delaying the completion and submission of this letter multiple times). Phone calls, e-mails, opening word processing software, and checking my bank account, all necessary steps to interface with the administration and submit my appeal, all became next to impossible due to the panic attacks they would invariably cause. I left Kingston and Queen¿¿s in the spring of 2016 to return home and seek treatment in a supervised fashion, and I am now in a position where I have greatly improved my mood, reduced anxiety levels to a manageable level, and begun to regain the skills that I had previously lost. As a result it is only now that I can reasonably begin the appeal process without risking a critical relapse.
I am submitting this appeal so that I can make up for the lost two years of my time at Queen¿¿s, eventually get those courses unreasonably impacted by my health issues removed or otherwise amended, and return to obtain my degree.
Thank you for consideration in this matter,
Ben
I am requesting that the Faculty of Arts and Science waive the deadline for appeals so that I may remedy the academic effects of the extreme collapse in my mental health from the middle of 2014 onwards.
The extenuating circumstances that inhibited my ability to appeal within the Faculty¿¿s original 21-day/1-term deadline, as denoted in my documentation, consisted of the major depressive disorder and chronic anxiety that I developed at the beginning of the Winter 2014 semester. While I was able to work out informal arrangements with my instructors to complete my coursework for that semester, I misapprehended the nature of what would be a serious and prolonged medical condition instead of a temporary period of emotional difficulty. Since the onset of this condition in January 2014, I have been beset with a variety of symptoms including a lack of motivation and/or enthusiasm for either professional or academic activity, diminished energy, chronic fatigue, erratic and unhealthy sleeping and nutrition habits, persistent low mood, recurring periods of acute anxiety leading to anxiety attacks, suicidal ideation, and acute social withdrawal. This has led to a severe reduction in my ability to concentrate, read or write academically, think critically, or use any of the array of higher-level brain functions critical to academic success. In effect, I developed a form of academic post-traumatic stress disorder, to the point where merely picking up books, or hearing other people mention school or careers was enough to trigger a downward emotional spiral.
These factors, in addition to hindering any semblance of academic or social life, also made it next to impossible to maintain the everyday skills needed to submit an appeal and follow through with subsequent deadlines (including delaying the completion and submission of this letter multiple times). Phone calls, e-mails, opening word processing software, and checking my bank account, all necessary steps to interface with the administration and submit my appeal, all became next to impossible due to the panic attacks they would invariably cause. I left Kingston and Queen¿¿s in the spring of 2016 to return home and seek treatment in a supervised fashion, and I am now in a position where I have greatly improved my mood, reduced anxiety levels to a manageable level, and begun to regain the skills that I had previously lost. As a result it is only now that I can reasonably begin the appeal process without risking a critical relapse.
I am submitting this appeal so that I can make up for the lost two years of my time at Queen¿¿s, eventually get those courses unreasonably impacted by my health issues removed or otherwise amended, and return to obtain my degree.
Thank you for consideration in this matter,
Ben