Petition Letter
I am appealing to waive the one-term deadline to drop courses for Fall 2021. My alcohol use disorder was exasperated by feelings of extreme isolation and being a failure. I am an older student who has been struggling to conclude his undergraduate studies for some time - which previous appeals can, unfortunately, attest to. I also stopped taking a medication due to extreme weight gain so my mood was consequently low, further contributing to my heavy drinking. I was unable to file my appeal in time because I had a manic episode in early January and decided to flee Kingston. I decided to go to Ottawa and stayed at a men's homeless shelter. For the duration of the winter semester, I was preoccupied with the immediate concern of stabilizing my psyche and resolving more immediate concerns (where do I from here, do I even want to continue to live, and so on).