These past few years was a messy whirlwind of existential crisis, failures, happiness, and moving on. Before the start of the pandemic, I chose to move back to my province after catching wind that the COVID-19 will hit the capital first. It was back in 2019 and I was in Metro Manila struggling to juggle this news, finals, and school requirements. It did not help that our professors were indifferent and the school admin was very uncooperative. I was sick all the time; my asthma attacks got worse, I had acid reflux for the first time, and I always had fever during and after every exam. I was reviewing for my classes (8 subjects with an average of 20-45 assigned case readings per meeting), finishing my apprenticeship (traveling from different cities braving the hell that is Manila traffic), helping my younger brother with his school work, and being involved in the family business. I was beyond exhausted. It finally hit the last straw when I went to go for a check up after a bad asthma attack and agonizing acid reflux. The doctor told me that I was so stressed that my body is trying to communicate through my illnesses that it could not keep up with me anymore. After completing my school requirements, I quickly packed my bags and moved back home. Terrified of the virus and the results of my finals, I was withdrawn for the first few weeks from my family. However, while eating lunch with my mom I suddenly cried in front of her and admitted that I was tired of law school. She cried with me and told me she understood and that she hated herself for letting it go on like this. We spent that day just mother-and-daughter bonding. I took my time to heal, take care of my health, and bond with my family. In the end I still decided to pursue law because I already committed myself in this career for so long that going back is not an option anymore. And at some point... I did enjoy my time learning about the law, the cases, and my law school buddies. Since moving back, I did not contract any illness. No asthma attack, no acid reflux, no fevers, no coughs, nothing. I was amazed that I can go through the week without coughing or wheezing. I even thanked God that I can finally go up and down the stairs without feeling lightheaded lololol It took a long and hard battle for me to understood the importance of healthily loving oneself. To be fair, it is difficult to realize that in law school 😂Anyway, this has become too long already!