Student Speeches: 826 Boston students take on wellness-based issues (Week #7)

What wellness-based issues have you noticed in our community and how can they be tackled? This was the question Boston International Newcomers Academy (BINcA) 10th graders tackled earlier this year during a speech contest organized by their English Language Arts class. 826 Boston Writers’ Room tutors worked with several students to craft their essays, and a few even joined the judges' panel. Students were tasked with exploring the theme of “Wellness,” identifying an issue, and providing evidence-backed solutions—all through a well-crafted speech. We're excited to share a few of these speeches with you every Wednesday, here on LinkedIn!??

Let's talk about mental health. How can we take care of our mental health struggles brought on by adversity we faced growing up? Do we always have to take care of ourselves by ourselves? Anahuma, a student at Boston International Newcomers Academy, explores these questions in her speech about growing pains and finding self-confidence.?

About Anahuma: Anahuma, age 17, is from Haiti. She chose the topic of mental health for her speech because she feels connected to it. Her favorite food is burgers. A person who inspires her is herself.

Content warning: This speech contains mentions of self harm.

My name is Anahuma Dosthene. I'm 17 years old, and I'm from Haiti. For as long as I can remember, mental health was never a topic discussed in my family. According to my parents, there was nothing that a good beating or punishment could not solve.

I left Haiti when I was 9 years old to live with my father, my stepmother, and my little sister in Brazil. My father had a very strict raising system. In the house, we had to do what he said without questioning.

So I spent many years under the will of my father, which could be suffocating at times. I felt that even my feelings were controlled by him, but I never said anything because I felt that I owed him obedience since he provided me with a house, food, education, and all I needed. I told myself that everything he did was for my well-being. I told myself that things would improve if I behaved better. But everything got worse and worse. I fought with my stepmother constantly because of my little sister. At the age of 12, I started cutting my arms as a way to not explode in front of my parents. I spent many years blaming myself. I said that if something went wrong, it was my fault.

I remember that I spent nights crying, and I got up in the mornings as if nothing had happened. Despite everything, I refused to talk to anyone. I felt that no one was going to understand me or that I could do it by myself. At the age of 14, I developed emotional dependence. I felt that I was not self-sufficient. My own father made me feel that way. This was made worse by the frequent comparisons he made to me in relation to his friend’s daughter. "Why are you not like her?" or "Why do you have to be like this?" were phrases that I constantly heard. Because of this, I was always looking for the approval of others.

I remember that the first way I found to escape all these feelings was sleep. I started spending almost my whole free time sleeping. For 2 years, my routine was to get up to do housework, go to school, come back from school, and go to sleep.

At the age of 15, I started reading as a way to kill time. Shortly after, I started writing. At first, they were small poems, but in a short time, I could write complete stories. Finally, after a long time, I felt proud of myself without the need for someone else to tell me.

In the year 2021, due to economic problems, my father decided that we would come to the United States. Since then, I have lived with my aunt. Even though she always supports me physically and emotionally, it is still hard for me to have confidence in myself and talk about my feelings.?

I know that I am not the only person who has gone through or is going through this. According to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH): "adolescents are more easily swayed by emotions which also makes them more vulnerable to mental health problems." OASH also says that: "Physical, emotional and social changes, including exposure to poverty, abuse, or violence, can make adolescents vulnerable to mental health problems." The environment can be the cause of mental health problems.?

According to Youth.gov : "for most youth, mental health distress is episodic, not permanent, and most can successfully navigate the challenges that come from experiencing a mental health disorder with treatment, peer and professional support and services, and a strong family and social support network." Many times, especially when we are young, we believe that we can overcome everything by ourselves but I discovered that sometimes we just need to be listened to. For this, we need to be confident to talk to others. It doesn’t need to be a professional. We just need to know that we have somebody here for us who will listen and at least try to understand our feelings.

“Emotional Development.” HHS Office of Population Affairs. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://opa.hhs.gov/adolescent-health/adolescent-development-explained/emotional-development .?

“Mental Health.” Mental Health | Youth.gov . Accessed June 21, 2023. https://youth.gov/youth-topics/youth-mental-health .?