Moving Out

I just wanted to use today’s blog as somewhat of a diary entry and talk about two major life updates and how they have affected me.

Firstly, I got vaccinated and moved out

I don’t even know where to begin. Almost two weeks ago, I received my second shot of the pfizer vaccine and moved out. I moved to my apartment on my college campus and one of my best friends is my roommate. I had always known the pandemic affected my mental health in ways I could not comprehend, but I didn’t truly realize how much I was suffering until I left my home. As soon as I returned to a sense of normalcy in terms of being a college student, my productivity levels, motivation levels, and focus improved significantly.

At home, I had a lot of trouble sleeping, would not do my assignments, and was always in a consistent state of anger and anxiety. All of this changed after I left my house almost instantly. This made me realize I should have probably taken the semester off because I was clearly not in a good state of mind due to all of the unprecedented changes. And I can’t imagine how many students are in a similar situation. I am really surprised universities did not lower tuition rates to at least take away the financial burden many students are experiencing.

Secondly, I got an internship that opened my eyes to many realities I was not aware of before

This semester I started working with an organization to draft a Needs Assessment for the Black Trans Community in my region and I had the opportunity of working with a really diverse team(almost consisting of all non-binary individuals) and part of the Needs Assessment project was drafting questions regarding access to healthcare. Hearing about the fears my co-workers experience and what the LGBTQIA+ community experiences was eye-opening and heart-wrenching.

There is already so much discrimination in the healthcare system, and members of the LGBTQIA+ face an additional layer of it. Because I am not part of the LGBTQIA+ community, I do not feel like it is my place to speak on this issue, but I hope that one day their experiences of discrimination are illuminated and addressed.

Everybody deserves to feel seen, respected and taken care of by their healthcare professionals.