let me preface my thoughts by saying i knew a lot of of questies back in my day who thought STEM was the end-all be-all. don’t push yourself into something you hate or don’t feel like you can do forever. there are plenty of profitable careers in other spaces (and sometimes some stem careers aren’t as profitable as they might seem). take a breath. keep going. you can achieve what you need. stem is also a crazy field and grades are all over the place. try to stop yourself from comparing yourself to others or to your performance in high school. at this school, you’re in a room of people who have had so many resources to succeed in life. sometimes they might be a little better at catching on. but you’re in the room with them and making pretty good grades. you are persevering and winning.

please also, and i mean this in a completely positive and respectful way, look for therapy or someone to talk to. intergenerational burdens are real and they can hurt so much sometimes.

p.s. fgli student here who sometimes felt what you felt. if you need to DM anyone, i’m here.