CARIMAC Times 2016: The JREAM Edition Journalists Reviving Awareness of what Matters | Page 51

child could feel obligated to do what his or her parent
asks because they want to please him or her. As a
result, they become involved in careers that are of
little interest to them.
She mentioned an example of a student who was
enrolled at the Caribbean Institute of Media and
Communication (CARIMAC) because that was what
the parent wanted him/her to do. She added that,
while the child may have the technical capabilities
to do the work, he or she does not have the passion
for the particular area of study.
Green knew what it meant to lack passion, as the
sparkle disappeared from her eye when she said,
“I was upset because I didn’t want to do actuarial
science… I kept thinking that I was doing this to
make her happy. What if I failed? That’s not going
to make her happy. It was a really confusing period.”
The challenges of the course
Green had to read for economics, accounting, and
financial management courses, which made her
worry about failing because she was not familiar
with those subject areas. Prior to attending the UWI,
her educational background was characterised by
the natural sciences. She enjoyed doing chemistry,
biology and physics.
“I started to become stressed and depressed often.
I started to cry more than I normally do, especially
when I had to do an exam or presentation.”
The actuarial science major confessed that adapting
to the social sciences posed a great challenge for her.
She blamed her mother whenever it felt like she was
going to fail a subject.
Dorette Blake Campbell, a mother of one, quickly

changed her welcoming smile to a sad, concerned
look after being told Green’s story. She expressed that
she would never suggest or force her daughter to do
anything she did not have an interest in doing. She
added that a child should be able to speak with his
or her parent, tell him or her what he or she wants
to do and, regardless of what the child chooses, the
parent should encourage that child.
“It must have been a very stressful situation for the
child, and it is a bad decision on the part of the parent.”
Campbell commented.
‘Red flags’ everywhere: The aftermath
After Green was released from the hospital she
noticed that it was increasingly difficult for her to
focus and remember things. If someone shared his/
her name, she would have to ask him/her again five
minutes later.
In order to keep track of things, her phone became
her best friend, because she could not remember
people’s faces and phone numbers. She said this
condition affected her academic performance
immensely. Her mid-semester grades, especially,
showed the effects of her overdose on marijuana.
“My mid-semester grades were horrible. I kept scoring
ones and threes out of 15 and 30,” she said.
To find out the cause of the problem she faced, Green
did a computerised tomography, commonly known
as a CT scan, on her brain.
When the doctor told her had suffered brain damage,
Green said it felt as if she could not breathe.
The doctor explained to her that when she ate the
marijuana brownies, it caused a strain on her heart

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