Monica Whipple… below you’ll find excerpts from Monica’s winning essay for the Global Awareness / Community Mental Health portion of the 2021 Building A Better World Scholarship. Welcome to Monica Whipple.
Please go here to meet all three of our 2021 Scholarship Winners.
The year of the pandemic… “Being globally aware is to educate yourself on different cultures and current issues that are happening with different ethnicities in the world. For the past year, the entirety of the earth was connected by a sickly virus that was doing more than just physically harming the people in its path. The months-long isolation, what if’s, and the health anxiety that swarmed those who had headaches and coughs took an extensive toll on the mental health of those all around the world”
A stigma… “You break your arm; what do you do? You go and see a doctor and receive help. It is that easy because you can show physical symptoms for a physical issue. So why is it different when it comes to a mental illness? When the topic of mental illness is brought up there seems to be a certain stigma around the conversation because mental illnesses such as OCD, depression, and anxiety are seen as a disadvantage or a cover-up for lazy people.”
I can only speak for myself… “when I say how hard it is living with anxiety and that is with the advantages of living in a first-world country. I was first diagnosed in fifth grade when I would feel panicked every time I left the house; this resulted in me isolating myself away from friends and family and hiding in my room. I had gotten good at managing my feelings and how I reacted since I have lived with this for over five years now. I saw firsthand what anxiety and depression did to my family members, and friends and I was thankful to have found a coping strategy so early. I had things under control or so I thought until the pandemic hit.”
“But what can I do?…That’s what I ask myself; that’s what I’ve been asking myself since the fifth grade. I want to help people, I want to help people so they never have to feel a fraction of what I once felt and that is why I have decided to major in social work/child development. With either of these majors, I can work in a hospital setting as a child life specialist where I can help kids around me feel their best every day..”
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Monica’s Plans…“I am headed to Muskegon Community College in the fall on the Muskegon Promise. After my two years are up I have hopes of transferring to a four year university in a bigger city where I can eventually start internships for my desired career path. My plan is to major in either of the following: psychology, social work or child development where I can then work my dream job of being a child life specialist. This career has been a big goal of mine because I will be able to work with children and help them process their emotions on hospitalization and help put their and their families fears at ease to make them as comfortable as possible. I want to be able to give back to others and promote a positive and healthy mindset for as long as I can. “
