My Journey to Self-Advocacy

Obstacles in my life have been many, but I have and always will continue to overcome them. Presently, I am 18 years old and a high school senior. I was retained in the first grade and diagnosed with a learning disability (LD). It was very difficult to not only watch my established friends move up to the second grade, but I also had to leave my new classmates to go to a resource classroom. I was sad and felt like a failure. Many kids thought I was odd, and it was difficult for me to make and keep friends. Many of the kids that I came in contact with would tease me and call me names.

Alyssa Sikand, a 2012 Allegra Ford Scholarship Honorable Mention, refuses to let her learning disability (LD) define her. After a rough first few years with LD, Alyssa learned to advocate for herself and seek out extra assistance. As a result, Alyssa is now a high school graduate with a 3.0 GPA, she has a resume filled with extracurriculars and part-time jobs, and a clear goal to help others through a job in the health care industry.

During my third grade year doctors thought I had leukemia, but after a hospital stay I learned that I had ITP, a blood disorder, which restricted my physical activities and lifestyle. By fifth grade my learning disability demanded that I be in a self-contained LD class, which isolated me from the friends I had finally found. At that time, I was also diagnosed with a mood disorder that caused severe mood swings and rages. That called for major intervention with individual and family therapists. From sixth to tenth grade, I attended a small charter school specializing in students that are “special” (learning disabilities).

I am special, but I wanted to be known for different special qualities than what I felt I was at that school for. I advocated for myself to my parents, teachers, school administrators, and therapists and requested that I be treated like a “regular” teenager. I wanted to attend a public high school and enjoy all the things that I felt I deserved, like football games, homecomings, proms, many friends and to learn to my ability and be challenged. I felt like I was always being treated differently than my siblings, and being held back because of my disabilities. Everyone is different. A disability doesn’t make a person any less then someone else, it just makes everyone different. I now attend a public high school. I am working hard to fulfill my dreams, and I am proud of who I am.

I am extremely driven to prove that I am equally as capable as everyone else. I may learn differently, but I can learn and be productive. I have become very vocal in my request for assistance. When I was younger, I was shy and didn’t have much self-esteem. I was embarrassed that I had to have special accommodations and would ignore them whenever possible. Now, since mainstreaming into a public high school setting, I have realized that I must work a little harder and search out what ever assistance is available to allow me to succeed.

Currently, I have over a 3.0 GPA. In addition to school, I work 25 hours per week as a teacher’s aide in a preschool. This has given me new skills, made me more independent, and has given me more self-confidence. Presently, I am becoming preschool certified by taking online Florida State preschool classes. For many years, I have also been a respite worker for a mentally challenged girl. I babysit children of all ages, and have become First Aid and CPR certified. All of my experiences have helped me overcome learning barriers.

Many people have helped me during my life. Of course my parents, who love me unconditionally, but also my teachers, therapists, tutors, Girl Scout leaders, and friends. But one memory that shines brightly is when I was in the hospital with the fear of a life-threatening illness. I was young and scared and the people that I encountered there comforted me and made a difficult time a little easier. My career goal is to become a paramedic. I have selected this path because of the compassion and care I received during that very impressionable time of my life. In return, I want to impact others. The nurses and others in the health field industry have etched a memory in my heart that will always be a reminder that I too want to help others.