Write an essay consisting of at least 300 words stating why you wish to participate in the institute and describing your education and career goals, community service activities and/or leadership roles you have performed I wrote an essay and I simply need aid in editing it
Shyness was burying me alive! Migrating to the USA from Ghana at a young age was not easy for me. Growing up in Ghana, I was used to the sense of a small community where the sun rays were always shining, roosters where the cheapest alarm clocks, sweet tantalizing sticks of sugar canes were growing in the backyard, and most of all, a sense of intimacy and community were among all the people. When I arrived to America, I was greeted bya chilling wind ripping through the course of my skin, and I thought to myself, I hate America already. Living in America was like living in a whole new world, I did not know anyone, and the thought of social contact made me feel completely nauseated. My shyness became so bad that I started stuttering words like p-p-lease, and t-t-thank you.
However, it was because of this shyness that introduced me to the world of psychiatry and scientific research. Entering into the middle school, I was tired of always sitting by myself in the lunch room, and having no one I can really express myself to.I wanted to open up to people, and in a sense, stop being allergic to them. I went online to research extreme shyness and I jumped out of my seat in surprise to find out that extreme shyness was actually a mental disorder (social anxiety disorder). Right away, I wanted to treat this disorder on my own. Like a psychiatrist, I took steps to treat my disorder. These steps were; taking vitamins such as vitamin B to help my nervous system fight stress and anxiety, Involvingmyself in a group called Stand and Deliver, a group that focused on public speaking and understanding individual worth, signing up for track and field, a sport that I was both good at and enjoyed, to understand teamwork, community, leadership, and the value of friendship. In time, I started feeling confident and comfortablein my own skin and interactions with people. It was a lengthy and practical process, but I had essentially in a way, treated my social anxiety disorder naturally, and the feeling of content in my heart and the enjoyment of life again made me extremely proud.
It was that moment when I realized I had treated my social anxiety disorder that I knew I desperately wanted to become a psychiatrist. If I can treat my own disorder, then surely I can help many people by curing their mental disorders. The mind and the way people behave became such an interesting topic to me. I delved myself into scientific research of the mind, stayed home on the weekends reading countless of disorders andsymptomswhile most of my peers were out having fun, used analytical intuition to try to solve people's problems, and researched about the different types of medications and treatments to different psychiatric disorders. Medical science and life itself became a mystery to me, and to try to solve this mystery, I tried to find a deeper meaning in everything. I read behind the lines of every word spoken, tried to interpret the body languages of people, viewed the world in both physical and spiritual essence, and observed actions using the cause and effect method,
In time, I breathed psychiatry, ate psychiatry, dreamed psychiatry, and was psychiatry to the extent that my constant chatters about psychiatry both brought smiles to my family faces, and frowns of annoyance.Research at home simply could not quench my thirst.So, last summer, I volunteered for work at Ramapo Psychiatric Hospital (RPH) in order to help people with psychiatric disorders. While many won't consider this to be an ideal summer vacation, I was excited to be doing something I loved, while contributing to the community as well. My task was to assist the seniors with minor work such as reading to them, taking them for walks, running errands for them, and simply being there when they needed a helping hand. One senior citizen that I took a special liking to was an 84 year old narcoleptic grandmother. Each day, when I walked into her room, she will always have this delightful smile that could brighten the whole room, and immediately turn a stormy day into the sunniest. I would listen to her talk about her grandkids, and I took noticed to how her chocolate eyes sparked up, and grew wide with excitement as she talked about her fantastic adventures with them. My lips will always twitch up as I wondered in amazement at how this elderly woman can resemble so much like a small child. I remember when she told me about an incident when she took her grandkids to the zoo, and she suddenly had a narcoleptic attack.Watching the dancing of the penguins with her two ecstatic grandkids, she suddenly had an uncontrollable sensation of deep sleep come over her, her body went limp, while her mind was still conscious, she could not move a muscle, her breath was compressed as if thousand bricks were placed on her chest, meanwhile, she experienced terrifying hallucinations. While telling me I watched as her face contorted, the wrinkles on her forehead taking a deep dent outlining her frustration. I was in awe of such a condition, and its random yet dangerous attacks. I thought how unfair it is for this condition to rob her of the quality of life with her family and friends. Her experience made me empathize more for people with mental disorders.
Listening to these seniors and understanding their conditions made my passion for becoming a psychiatrist even more fueled. Whether it was reading to them,practicing my psychiatric skills on them, or being pulled into their engaging life experiences, I found myself pulled into their world of underlying curiosity, and their struggle to simply live life to its fullest. Participating in the W.E.B. Dubois scholars institute is not just about a summer program to me, it is a program where I can find solitude in quenching my thirst for knowledge, expanding my interactions with different people of all race, ethnicity, religion, and social background, while engaging in what I am most passionate about; Solving life's mystery behind the power of the mind. In some ways I can reflect back to my transition from Ghana to America, and I can honestly say now how this transition has been a blessing to me, because although as hackney as this may sound, I've come to realize that things happen for a reason. My journey to my dream is just starting, and somehow I have a powerful feeling inside me that crossing the bridge to this journey starts with going to this summer W.E.B Dubois's institution. Dear future, I'm ready, Dear Shyness, Thank you for your guidance.