“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”
–Martin Luther King, Jr.
In honor of Martin Luther King, I wanted to finally take a new step in faith and share a series of posts that I have been keeping to myself for a while. I’m hoping that it will allow some of you to take the first step in learning about a field that you may be interested in pursuing or that you may have no knowledge about because it is not really encouraged in some of our communities.
As many of you know, I am currently in my first year of law school. The main questions I have been getting for the past few months are “How’s law school going?” “Is it as awful as it looks on tv?” or “How’d your first semester go?”
Ask these questions to any 1L at any law school and I’m sure they’ll answer in pretty much the same way. No one loves their first year of law school and everyone wants the misery to end; but we all act like it’s all butterflies and sunshine and that we’re doing great! I always just answer with something along the lines of, “It wasn’t as bad as everyone made it seem” or “It’s supposed to be the worst year of my life, and I’m halfway through so I feel good!”
But I was never being completely honest. I want to use the next few weeks to truthfully answer all of the questions that I have been getting, because this is a relatively unknown field in the South Asian community. Going to law school isn’t the ideal path for many South Asian parents; and because there aren’t too many of us in the field, there are so many fears and unanswered questions. But there is nothing that should scare you away from the legal field (okay actually law school is scary, but if you’re passionate about something, nothing can get in the way of fulfilling your dreams). I’m not an expert, but I think I have been through a pretty unique first semester law school experience–and I want to tie in my mental health discussions with my past year as a student!
Dealing With Personal Struggles in Law School
A major reason I avoided talking truthfully about law school was because I was dealing with a lot outside of law school. In my first post, I want to share my personal story and the the surrounding contexts of my situation. Almost every law student deals with something in their lives at some point in law school. Unfortunately, it seemed like I got hit with some of the worst, one right after another, just as I was starting out. Laying this foundation out will hopefully show you guys why my first semester personally went the way it did–and that it doesn’t mean yours will go the same way!
Coming Into Law School with a Mental Health Illness
It is extremely common for law students and lawyers–like many professionals–to experience some sort of situational mental health condition at some point in their academic or professional careers. A big reason for this is due to the way the system of the field is set up. There are so many stats and articles about high correlations between the legal profession and mental health struggles. However, stepping into this field with a pre-existing mental health condition is something that definitely requires some serious thought and planning–and the resources that discuss this are very minimal (I couldn’t find a single article about going into law school with a mental health diagnosis). It’s so important to have these resources, because seeing how living with a mental health condition in law school can be difficult–but in no way impossible–can be so encouraging!
Law School Generally
I’ll also *try* to go more in depth about law school in general, because navigating law school in itself can be very difficult. It is a completely new type of environment, and unless you come from a family of lawyers, you’re probably in for a surprise! But, if it ever gets overwhelming, it is so important to step away from the way the system is set up and follow your own instincts.
Law School as a South Asian
It can especially be especially difficult to enter and navigate law school while being an underrepresented group in the legal field. Most of my friends don’t know anything about what I’m learning in law school–but I can’t blame them, because even I didn’t know what I was walking into when I began submitting applications. Not having too many South Asian lawyers to turn to can make the process of navigating law school more daunting than it has to be.
These are some of the topics I wanted to cover for the next few weeks, and if you have any other questions, please reach out! I am in no way the brightest or best example of a law student. However, I think it’s so important for incoming students of any profession to get as much input as they can from a variety of different perspectives.
Because when you enter a new educational phase of your life, you’re not just a student. You’re a child, a sibling, a friend, a family member, a loved one, a community member, a human being. It can become so easy to lose sight of everything else that matters while being a student–and I just don’t think these topics or struggles are talked about enough.
I hope this gives us a chance to start more conversations and break even more barriers in our South Asian communities!
