All Flowers Need to Lose Petals as they Grow: My Journey as a Blogger

Hello everyone! I’m Alyson and I’m going to be your blogger for Accessibility Services for the school year. I’m incredibly excited to share my experiences and tips for anyone who may or not be registered with these services. As a blogger, I will be writing about available resources for you, my journey into accessibility services, and general tips for first year, including managing your time, finding community, and ways to prioritize your well-being. But before we get into that, why don’t I start by introducing myself? I’m a third-year Materials Science and Engineering student with a passion for sustainability and, not surprisingly, with writing. I have had my own personal ups and downs throughout the past few years of me being here, including changing majors, which have allowed me to grow and become the person I am now. I’m a commuter student who lives alone, meaning I’ve had to learn how to find home away from home during my long days on campus. As the years have gone by, I’ve slowly gotten out of my shell and started participating in more clubs revolving around writing, sustainability, and music! At the same time, I’ve been learning to manage my chronic health disorder and my general anxiety disorder.

Even though I find myself comfortable where I currently am and am incredibly proud of all the progress I have made, I am nowhere near being done my personal growth. I have skipped out on being with friends or going to events from anxiety, I questioned if I was good enough for my degree, and I have often neglected my own personal health. Sometimes, I still fall into those traps. Other times, I get to jump over them without a second thought. But, the important part is that growth is continuous, and I’m doing that by hopefully finally getting the treatment I need and registering with Accessibility Services. Here I am now, able to help students out who may or may not be in the same position as me and hoping that I can at least have a few readers relate to the challenges and successes. Throughout the year, I will continue talking about ways for you to define your own success and achieve it here at U of T. Also, I am here to talk about how you may want to use the Accessibility Services department when you need to. We offer peer mentorship, weekly dialogues, drop-in peer advisors, learning workshops, personal growth workshops, ways to navigate disabilities, Accessibility Advisors, and in general, a way for you to reach out if you need any way to feel welcomed at here. As I’m exploring the services, I hope you do too! Thank you for reading and I can’t wait to blog for you!