Recently, a friend of mine had a nervous breakdown and took a semester off of school. He was marked as a drop out since the moment he turned in his books. He thought his dreams of becoming a college graduate were over with, after all, no universities he knew about would allow a drop out to enroll. He spent weeks applying for job applications, he even stooped to apply for McDonalds, I a place he had long ago promised himself he would never concider. His self-esteem dived when he never recieved any contact from McDonalds what-so ever. In fact, no place even concidered hiring him. Things got even worse when he discovered his parents were moving to a different city from where he was raised in.
Things were looking really bad. He became suicidal and took many anti-depressants to keep from feeling worthless. His girlfriend, the one ray of hope in his life took the inititive to risk his wrath and outrage to call a few schools in the area he was moving to and set up an appointment to discuss his options. Rage never did cross his mind though when she told him of her plans. He in fact was very excited to learn the possibility of coming back to school. He waited in anticipation for weeks until the day of the meeting came.
When he first walked into the counciling office, he was greeted with a warm smile. He shook the lady’s hand inthusiastically. She asked him about dropping out of school. He explained why he did not nessarily drop out, he just removed himself temporarily. He was suddenly confident that he wanted more than anything to return back to school. After much talk, the couselor agreed that he could graduate on time from their school if he took two summer classes. He also was bumped up to advanced classes to help him get into college.
Moral of the blog is that even though things get really hard, good can come from bad situations. If you are thinking about dropping out of high school, think about what my friend went through. Finding a job became hell on earth. His self-esteem dropped lower than it was before and explaining to people the reason he wasn’t attending school was embarrasing. If you are having difficulty, SPEAK UP! Chances are your school will work with you to help keep your education thriving.
I really like that story. Thanks for sharing it. I know of several students who’ve gone through similar tough times recently, and it’s so good to hear about a situation where people gave this person a chance, and he took a chance himself, and it was worthwhile. Does anyone else know of resources or places for students to turn to? I do know a friend recently told me about a program called Reaching Higher, in Brighton, that helps students put the past behind them and move on in life. If you want more information, check out the Web site.
I can relate very much to all of this. I personally can testify to the fact that things can get very hard, especially when school is added to the load. This last school year, I was having a really hard time with what was going on in my life. I couldn’t handle it, so I started coping in all of the wrong ways. A lot of people didn’t even know that anything was wrong with me, but there were some that were very concerned. A lot of days, I would be okay out of school, but the school day itself was unbearable.
So unbearable, in fact, that the idea of going to class almost made me sick. I really needed someone to talk to. So I confided in one of the counselors at my school. To my surprise, she completely understood, and was an amazing person to talk to. It turns out she has been through some tough times, too.
Even with that helping hand, I was still having a lot of trouble going to class. I was to the point where out of the 7 classes of every scheduled day, I was going to 3, maybe 4. I knew that I was going to get in some big trouble, and was running the risk of failing all of my classes – I mean, I hadn’t done homework in months. So I talked to my teachers. I got another big surprise – some of them had been through some really tough things, or known people that had. They were more understanding than I possibly could have dreamed.
With some modifications to my schedule, 3 weeks away from school to help me regain my grip on reality, some agreements with my teachers about my schoolwork requirements, and many, many trips to the counselor’s office, I managed to get through the school year. I didn’t get the grades I’m used to, but sometimes, life gets in the way. I have to take one class online to make up for what I missed, but I think it’s worth it. I now know that I can get through a lot. I have a lot of great people to thank.
The moral of this story? It can be incredibly tough, yes. You might have to accept that your grades and your school year won’t be the type you’re used to. But if you talk to the people that can make it easier for you, I bet you’ll be surprised. Teachers and counselors are human, too. And they can be really great listeners.
Recently, a friend of mine had a nervous breakdown and took a semester off of school. He was marked as a drop out since the moment he turned in his books. He thought his dreams of becoming a college graduate were over with, after all, no universities he knew about would allow a drop out to enroll. He spent weeks applying for job applications, he even stooped to apply for McDonalds, I a place he had long ago promised himself he would never concider. His self-esteem dived when he never recieved any contact from McDonalds what-so ever. In fact, no place even concidered hiring him. Things got even worse when he discovered his parents were moving to a different city from where he was raised in.
Things were looking really bad. He became suicidal and took many anti-depressants to keep from feeling worthless. His girlfriend, the one ray of hope in his life took the inititive to risk his wrath and outrage to call a few schools in the area he was moving to and set up an appointment to discuss his options. Rage never did cross his mind though when she told him of her plans. He in fact was very excited to learn the possibility of coming back to school. He waited in anticipation for weeks until the day of the meeting came.
When he first walked into the counciling office, he was greeted with a warm smile. He shook the lady’s hand inthusiastically. She asked him about dropping out of school. He explained why he did not nessarily drop out, he just removed himself temporarily. He was suddenly confident that he wanted more than anything to return back to school. After much talk, the couselor agreed that he could graduate on time from their school if he took two summer classes. He also was bumped up to advanced classes to help him get into college.
Moral of the blog is that even though things get really hard, good can come from bad situations. If you are thinking about dropping out of high school, think about what my friend went through. Finding a job became hell on earth. His self-esteem dropped lower than it was before and explaining to people the reason he wasn’t attending school was embarrasing. If you are having difficulty, SPEAK UP! Chances are your school will work with you to help keep your education thriving.
I really like that story. Thanks for sharing it. I know of several students who’ve gone through similar tough times recently, and it’s so good to hear about a situation where people gave this person a chance, and he took a chance himself, and it was worthwhile. Does anyone else know of resources or places for students to turn to? I do know a friend recently told me about a program called Reaching Higher, in Brighton, that helps students put the past behind them and move on in life. If you want more information, check out the Web site.
–Nancy (site editor)
Can I tell you a story?
I can relate very much to all of this. I personally can testify to the fact that things can get very hard, especially when school is added to the load. This last school year, I was having a really hard time with what was going on in my life. I couldn’t handle it, so I started coping in all of the wrong ways. A lot of people didn’t even know that anything was wrong with me, but there were some that were very concerned. A lot of days, I would be okay out of school, but the school day itself was unbearable.
So unbearable, in fact, that the idea of going to class almost made me sick. I really needed someone to talk to. So I confided in one of the counselors at my school. To my surprise, she completely understood, and was an amazing person to talk to. It turns out she has been through some tough times, too.
Even with that helping hand, I was still having a lot of trouble going to class. I was to the point where out of the 7 classes of every scheduled day, I was going to 3, maybe 4. I knew that I was going to get in some big trouble, and was running the risk of failing all of my classes – I mean, I hadn’t done homework in months. So I talked to my teachers. I got another big surprise – some of them had been through some really tough things, or known people that had. They were more understanding than I possibly could have dreamed.
With some modifications to my schedule, 3 weeks away from school to help me regain my grip on reality, some agreements with my teachers about my schoolwork requirements, and many, many trips to the counselor’s office, I managed to get through the school year. I didn’t get the grades I’m used to, but sometimes, life gets in the way. I have to take one class online to make up for what I missed, but I think it’s worth it. I now know that I can get through a lot. I have a lot of great people to thank.
The moral of this story? It can be incredibly tough, yes. You might have to accept that your grades and your school year won’t be the type you’re used to. But if you talk to the people that can make it easier for you, I bet you’ll be surprised. Teachers and counselors are human, too. And they can be really great listeners.