Personal Narrative-Oakwood Scholarship

Oakwood Scholarship
My hard times in high school weren't necessarily tragic ones. My struggle is one that many people will deal with in their lives, and one that I believe is possible to change by just altering your lifestyle. I, and many others, have struggled with a mental illness.
My first encounter with this problem was freshman year. Out of the blue, I was shaking uncontrollably, everyone telling me to “just breath”, but I couldn't seem to find any air in my lungs. The next thing I knew I was in the hospital with a needle in my arm, and a doctor telling me it was only a panic attack. In my dazed state I wondered how this could be true. How could something that felt like I was dying be only a panic attack? I never saw myself as an anxious person and knew nothing about these attacks, but I would soon find out everything about them.
I would go from a relaxed state hanging out on the couch to a crippled mess on the floor, struggling to find my breath. I would get so worked up that I would hyperventilate, unconscious ten minutes later, or in the bathroom vomiting. This happened about three times a week and I felt absolutely helpless. Having no control of my body struck fear in me that I had never felt before. To avoid this fear I tried to keep myself safe by going to school less, and just doing less with my life all together. I no longer was interested in being around people and studying for school was hard to focus on. My grades slipped from A’s to barely passing. I was prescribed medication, but it never seemed to work and made me feel like a walking zombie. I began to feel like a lost