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My Life In Haiti

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From the start life has always been a battlefield for me and my family. In Haiti my father had studied to become an engineer despite his poor upbringing and my mother had worked multiple jobs to help support the family. Life in Haiti had already been tough but after a coup d’état and an election there was finally hope that Haitians would have to live under a repressive government no longer. The new government created hope which was then solidified when Duvalier announced his candidacy, by this time he was already a well-known physician that took part in many public health campaigns. My father remembers when Duvalier was elected, with promises of rebuilding a broken country and the happiness that followed, but this did not last. Shortly after …show more content…

It was my sister that taught me how to read, about life, and different languages. It was during this time that my sister’s behavior started to change. She soon became more irritable, talked of self-harm, and developed depression it may have been due to the stressors of having to take care of the household at a young age and she also quickly noticed the changes within herself and felt shame which made the symptoms worse. There was and is a major stigma against mental illness in Haiti, it is often blamed on witchcraft due to the fact that there aren’t a lot of resources devoted to explaining and treating this public health issue. Mental illness is usually stigmatized in all countries, but we were lucky that we found resources in Connecticut to help her heal. I admired the medical professionals that helped my sister and saw their ability to touch so many lives and build a lifelong rapport with their patients. It is one of the many factors that drew me to the healthcare field. I truly want to make a mark on patients’ lives and aid in implementing public health initiatives for mental health and low-income

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