<p>I am a freshman in high school that is a bit confused in the direction I need to go. In middle school I was the 4.0 student, star athlete, musician, and Boy Scout, as well as many other activities. However I struggled through all of middle school with Crones disease. Now I am attending a special high school that is focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. The school is based on projects and there are no tests in any classes. Long story short it is extremely hard to get an A (which I have done all my life). I am still doing all my Extra Curricular activities because I want to attend a top ranked engineering school such as Stanford or MIT. However, now that I am in high school and the stress level has increased significantly and my Crones disease has gotten worse. I am very sick right now and I can hardly make it through a week of school without staying home. My grades are suffering because it is all projects that are mostly in groups. To put it bluntly I am failing almost all my classes and up until now I have never gotten a B in my life. I am slowly realizing that with my grades I will be lucky to get into a community college let alone Stanford. I am starting to fall into depression and I dont know what to do. I am considering home schooling, even though my parents work all day. Im starting to think that I work harder than 99% of kids, but 99% of kids got luckier than I did. What should I do? I NEED HELP!</p>
<p>Can you transfer to a normal high school?</p>
<p>If your high school is as challenging as you say, most kids likely do get Bs and also get into great colleges. Maybe you could speak with the counsellor about this to put things in perspective.</p>
<p>If the issue with your grades is attendance because of illness, I would either transfer schools or talk to teachers about ways to make up the grades, if this is possible.</p>
<p>Since the stress over your grades is probably contributing to your Crohn’s episodes, it is important for you to do what you can to get your Crohn’s under control. Your health, after all, is paramount here, not what college you land in. If this means switching schools, by all means do it. College and the rest of your life will all work out-but you must learn to be as healthy as you can and find strategies to deal with the Crohn’s.</p>
<p>I suppose I could transfer to a normal highschool but I believe the stress load would be similar. I was suggesting home schooling because it allows me to go at my own pace, doesn’t it?</p>
<p>Your health should definitely come first. I would suggest talking to a guidance counselor or maybe your school nurse to get some tips to manage your stress. Also, since you said that being absent a lot will affect your college chances, then when the time comes to apply, you can probably indicate that you had extenuating circumstances due to your health. Some colleges might also be impressed to see that you can maintain all of the work in the school even while have Crones disease and having average grades. </p>
<p>I would also recommend talking to all your teachers about different ways to help you catch up with work even while being absent. Maybe they could email you the lessons/notes or a friend could give you the missing work and homework. As for the group projects, you should ask them to make accommodations for you. If none of the above really work, then you could probably consider homeschooling, but I am positive that your school can surely make accommodations for you, so i strongly suggest speaking to your guidance counselor.</p>