In fifth grade, I could barely read or do math. I was reading at a first-grade level. My teachers didn't believe in me, and I didn’t believe in myself. My special education math teacher told me, “C’s are good enough for you, and you should go do hair and nails for a living.” Ever since that day, I have wanted to prove her wrong. I tried my best at school, but the only people who knew how hard I was trying were my family. I stayed up countless hours trying to do the work everyone thought was “easy.” I sat at the dining room table crying over math with my dad, considering just giving up because I thought I would never be as good as the other kids in my class. I sat in math class crying because I kept getting the answers wrong while the teacher yelled at me calling me “useless.” I wanted to be normal. I continued to work toward my dream of getting into college. My parents said we needed to figure out why I couldn't read or do math. After testing, I was diagnosed with severe dyslexia and dyscalculia. I see words and numbers jumbled, flipped upside down or backward, and sentences move all over the place like a kaleidoscope. With the diagnosis, I finally got validation for what I was seeing and feeling. If you were to ask the fifth-grade me what I thought was wrong with me, I would have said, “I'm just not good enough.” I didn't believe in myself, and no one understood what was going on inside of me. I was bullied because I had to go to special classes. Fifth, sixth, and seventh grades were extremely hard for me, but I didn't give up. It took until eighth grade for a teacher to understand me and help me. Having a teacher believed in me, push me, and wanted me to succeed was something I had been waiting for. It was a wonderful feeling I had never felt before—and that compassion made me want to succeed even more. Mrs. Kern changed my life. I worked extremely hard every day with Mrs. Kern who found reading strategies that worked for me and used different worksheets for math. I started to comprehend the work, and I was getting better at reading and math. I knew I wanted to learn more and understand more to get better grades. So, I challenged myself and started reading for fun, which I never would have imagined I would have done before. I went from having C’s and D’s to having A’s and B’s. Even though I haven't seen Mrs. Kern in years, she continues to influence me. With my new confidence, I chose to focus on my academics, and I started advocating for myself. At the beginning of each school year, I set up meetings with teachers so they can understand who I am—not just as a student but personally, too. I can't see graphs or lines like other students can, but my math teacher this past year came up with different ways for me to learn the material like everyone else can, including building models that I could hold with my hands. When the school tried to take my IEP away because I was doing so well in my AP and Honors classes, I fought. I didn't just let my parents fight for me. I explained to teachers and administrators what I saw and what I needed. I now can say that I have dyslexia and dyscalculia without crying and being scared of what people might think of me. Just because you learn differently doesn't mean you don't have the right to learn. For a while, I was considering doing just hair and nails. Now, I'm writing college essays, and I know I am destined to do something great with my life.