My parents divorced in 2010 which impacted me a lot because I
started struggling with anxiety, so my mom thought I should
see a psychologist. I first started seeing a school counselor at
my elementary school which didn't help me at all. My mom then
took me to several different therapists around San Francisco
when I was younger. As I got older, I became stronger as a person
because I began to cope with my anxiety on my own.
My mom always manages to help boost my ego during hard times
because she gives me a lot of self-confidence. My mom was a
secretary at an elementary school for many years, and she decided
to go back to school to get her bachelor's degree in psychology.
After achieving her bachelor's degree, she went to USF to get her
masters in psychology. By her going back to school and working at the
same time while raising my siblings and me which is a lot to deal with.
I looked up to her determination, and I inspire to be the same way.
I’m in my sophomore year of high school, and it’s going great so far, even
though it has been stressful with tests and essays. I get through my
assignments with the best of my ability. One example would be the PSAT
that I’ve taken recently. It was harder than I expected and I feel like I
probably failed it. This gave me a better idea of how the test is arranged
and how I can improve my thinking while I study for the actual SATs. I've
been trying very hard to earn good grades in school so that I can reach my
career goal and to become successful in life.
After high school, I plan to go to a four-year college, preferably UCLA, because
I want to join their hockey team. I plan to become a psychologist because I find
the study of the mind interesting, and I want to help kids work through their life obstacles. I also want to be the support that you didn't find as a kid because
many of the psychologists I spoke to weren’t very helpful, I want to be that change, and I know I can do better to help kids feel confident to become successful in their lives.
I also thought about becoming a dentist. I find the study of teeth fascinating, and I want to help people feel positive about their smile. I got this idea when I went to see an orthodontist to get my braces. I think it would be cool working with teeth. This is one option that I might choose as a career.
What I want to get out of YouthLine is to become more supportive of my peers and gaining more transformative job skills. I want to be more supportive by helping my peers by being a shoulder to lean on whenever someone needs emotional support. I also plan on gaining transformative job skills by participating in YouthLine and using this resource to improve my tech skills.
Most of my Latino, Asian, Muslim and American friends have lived most of their lives in a city called San Francisco. Unlike my friends, I was born and raised in a foreign country and not too long ago I moved to San Francisco. I grew up in the countryside of Panama in an Asian household where I learned how to speak Mandarin, Cantonese, Haka,
Spanish, and English. Living and growing up in a foreign country was
entirely different from San Francisco.
In my 15 years of living in Panama, I went to a private Christian school where I was taught to read the bible, but it was a challenge for me since my parents didn’t believe in God. Every day we had to wake up early because we had to travel 2 hours to get to school and it was like this for ten years. My sister and I didn’t grow up with things handed to us quickly; instead, we had to work for the things we wanted. I was always taught to give my best in my education because it was not cheap for my parents to
pay for a private school. In the school I attended, I was a victim of bullying, where my classmates called me by different names or spread things that weren’t true about me. This stage in my life was not easy, and it's when my life turned upside down. I felt lost and started feeling sad and suicidal thoughts began coming as the day, months and years came by. My sister was always there for me to cheer me on and thanks to her, my life had a 360 change.
Living with my parents and sisters was sometimes annoying, irritating, and
unfathomable, but it was also fun. Back in the old days, we used to have a day
we called “ Family Day,” and it was our time to spend together; since we came
late from school and my parents had to work daily. Family Day was always fun
because we usually went to eat breakfast in a restaurant in the city, then we
went shopping around the mall and sometimes it was funny to see my dad’s
face after so many hours of shopping. After a long day of shopping, laughter,
tears, and emotions, we went home and ate. Those days were fun to remember,
while other days were just dull because we had to work in the restaurant from
five AM to nine PM. Sometimes my mom would nag, and we would turn against
my mom making her look like she was the devil. We would say these hurtful
words to my mom without knowing that it hurt her feelings. Thinking back on
these hurtful memories, I wish I could take those words back and tell my mom
how much I love her and appreciate her.
My life in San Francisco has its positive side, but it is not always sunshine and
flowers, and sometimes it can be dark and depressing. When I started living
in here, I used to cry every night cause I didn’t have my parents by my side
or anyone for that matters. I held some of my anger inside of me, and it’s
one of the reasons I always have a poker face, but sometimes I just lash
out. I had nobody and was nobody until I met the famous Katherine. She
was nice to me, not like the other people in the household. She later
became my role model apart from my mom, she took me everywhere,
bought me stuff, even presenting me to her friends. At some point in
my life, I realized that sometimes she may look like she is always mad,
but she isn’t once you get to know her. As the months and year came
by, I got to know her better, and I got to the point I consider her my big
sister.