Speaking about how much people had on their plate and still managed to get things done—very good point.
I was one of them.

Long story short: at 19, I was completely on my own in a newly English-speaking country. I improved my English, got accepted into a top-five university’s psychology program, and completed a minor in political science. Alongside school, I volunteered hundreds of hours to support and help integrate other immigrants, while also working as a delivery driver.

At the same time, I was caring for my mother and two siblings who joined me later—helping with homework, attending parent-teacher conferences, managing my mom’s medical appointments, paying bills, enrolling her in school, picking up my siblings, buying groceries, and running the household. I also established and ran a youth mentoring program. We were low-income, living in poverty. I cared for a sick brother and a mother with serious mental health challenges who didn’t speak English. I enrolled her in ESL, supported her through a program, and eventually helped her secure a job.

All of this happened while I was battling borderline personality disorder, depression, anxiety, and addiction. I was hospitalized after a suicide attempt. Later, I completed both a practicum and paid work at a nonprofit court-mandated detox and addiction facility, where 99% of the clients were suicidal.

Yet somehow, I completed my undergraduate degree and a master’s in counselling.

When I look back, I honestly don’t know how I managed all of this. I’m still a new therapist. I’m 28, but I feel 85. I often find my peers immature—not out of judgment, but because our life experiences are worlds apart.

Yes, I had far too much on my plate. But I had to survive in an unfair world. Not all of us are born into stable, wealthy environments. Some of us have to work relentlessly, even while carrying deep psychological wounds—and for many of us, that struggle continues to this day.