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Hello there !

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Personal (Non-Normative) Event: Diagnosed with Cholesterol and calcium deficiency at 1 year old

World Event: Terrorist Attack of 9/11 and the Economic recession

Theory: Bowlby's Ethological Perspective on Attachment

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Infancy & Toddlerhood: Non-Normative Event - Diagnosis of Cholesterol 

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Infancy & Toddlerhood: Non-Normative Event - Diagnosis of Cholesterol 

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Around the age of 1, I was diagnosed with cholesterol and a calcium deficiency. Normally, babies at that age are getting their nutrients from milk and other types of baby-appropriate food. However in my case, I was immensely intolerant to milk, therefore, my mom decided to continue giving me baby formula so I wouldn't become deficient of calcium. Unbeknownst to her, it actually ended up doing the exact opposite. I was in pain due to an inflamed liver. At the doctor, my mom was instructed to substitute milk for yogurt and cheese for calcium intake. I was also forbidden from drinking milk for quite some time, at least until my liver stopped being inflamed.

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Infancy & Toddlerhood: World Event- 9/11

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Infancy & Toddlerhood: World Event- 9/11

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The terrorist attack of 9/11 occurred a few months before I was born. Although the consequences of such atrocious acts did not affect me directly, they did affect the livelihood of my family due to the economic recession proceeding 9/11. My father being the sole breadwinner of the family lost his job.

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Infancy and Toddlerhood: Bowlby's Ethological Perspective on Attachment 

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Infancy and Toddlerhood: Bowlby's Ethological Perspective on Attachment 

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Bowlby's Ethological Perspective on Attachment explains why my behavior varied in the presence of my parents as opposed to that of a stranger. It also neatly detailed a need for a child to form a secure bond with their caregiver which in my case would be my mother. Throughout the proposed four stages of attachment in Bowlby's theory, I was able to better understand my connection with my parents.

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Personal (Age-graded)Event: Entering Pre-K at 5 years old

World Event: Official Economic recession of 2008

Theory: Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

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Early Childhood Years: Personal (Age-Graded) Event - A Cute Kindergarten Kid

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Early Childhood Years: Personal (Age-Graded) Event - A Cute Kindergarten Kid

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Upon turning 5 years old, I entered Pre-K. Although I don't remember much about my first year in school, I do remember experiencing separation anxiety as I saw my parents leave the classroom.

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Early Childhood Years: World Event - Economic Recession of 2008

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Early Childhood Years: World Event - Economic Recession of 2008

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In the year 2008, the United States experienced an economic crisis. With cheap credit and lenient lending standards, the housing bubble burst and the market crashed. My dad at the time worked in the mortgage sector and was unfortunately let go as a result of the bubble bursting. Without a job to support the family, my dad was left with no option but to focus on finding a low paying job so we could have a roof over our head and food on our table. As a result of loosing his job, my dad decided to sell our house in Mission,Texas and we moved to a relatives house while the economy picked up pace again.

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Early Childhood Years: Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

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Early Childhood Years: Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

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The first nine years of my life were characterized by Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development, specifically the first stage known as Pre-conventional Morality. During this stage of moral development, children base their behavior on the expectations set by adults and the ramifications of not living up to those expectations. Whether it be during the first five years of school or the first nine years of my life, there were plenty of times in which I broke the rules and received the appropriate punishment. As a result of the continuous punishment, I learned to be obedient out of self-interest. I didn't want to receive anymore punishment and instead chose to be praised for my good behavior rather than the behavior deemed "unacceptable".

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Personal (Age-Graded) Event: Began middle school at 11 years old.

World Event: Evolution of Pop Culture

Concept: Self-Esteem and Self-Concept

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Middle Childhood Years: Personal (Age-graded) Event - Middle School Years 

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Middle Childhood Years: Personal (Age-graded) Event - Middle School Years 

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Beginning middle school at 11 years old was somewhat exciting for me. I was ecstatic to experience a change of scenery that was well welcomed. As I look back at this change, I realized it wasn't something to look forward to. My middle school years were plagued with various moments of self-doubt, self-esteem issues, and a feeling of hopelessness. However, the one thing that got me through those tough three years were my best friends who made every moment in those horrendous hallways worth it.

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Middle Childhood Years: World Event- Evolution of Pop-Culture 

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Middle Childhood Years: World Event- Evolution of Pop-Culture 

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The year is 2013 and Pop Culture is at it's peak. Apple had just presented what would be known as the staple of technology for many years, the iPhone. Music was being blasted at every cafe, bar, store, etc. If you didn't hear the occasional "baby, baby, baby, oooooohhhh" then you probably weren't listening to Justin Bieber's debut song that booked his ticket into stardom. Nicki Minaj was at the tip top of her career and the music industry was dominating the world. In terms of what captivated the audience the most, that would be the selfie. Who knew turning your camera around and taking a close up photo of yourself could cause so much commotion? For me, however, this meant having to come head-to-head with my image issues which I wasn't ready to do. People all around the world were promoting self-image confidence, but I wasn't convinced. My self-image issues were getting in the way of me enjoying taking photos over the course of my three years in middle school, and I, instead chose to focus on the other aspects of Pop Culture such as being on my iPhone for long periods of time and enjoying the multitude of media that was being put out into the world.

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Middle Childhood Years: Self-Esteem and Self-Concept

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Middle Childhood Years: Self-Esteem and Self-Concept

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Self-Esteem and Self-Concept is something I've struggled with for as long as I can remember. Even now as I'm entering adulthood, I'm still unsure of who I am and what my value is in this world. As I was reading chapter 9, these two concepts grabbed my attention simply because I never figured out the worth of them two. I began struggling with self-esteem as young as 8 years old. For a child, that is somewhat young to be worrying about the way you are perceived but here I was struggling with it already. The many trials I went through during my middle childhood really put my self-esteem to the test. Even more so, my self-concept continuously changed to fit my mood of the day and ranged in levels of perspective and maturity.

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Personal(Age-graded/Social-Cultural) Event: I had a quinceañera when I turned 15 as part of my Mexican culture.

World Event: Black Lives Matter Movement nearing it's peak

Theory: James Marcia's Identity Status Theory

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Adolescence: Personal (Age-graded/Social-Cultural) Event - My Quinceañera 

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Adolescence: Personal (Age-graded/Social-Cultural) Event - My Quinceañera 

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In the Mexican culture, turning fifteen is a step in the direction of assuming womanly duties and responsibilities. It is being presented to society by your family as a women and no longer a child. Moreover, it is usually accompanied by a big celebration with a beautiful gown and many guests congratulating you on your big day. For me, my quinceañera was unforgettable. It was a moment I had dreamed of for such a long time that when it actually happened I was nothing short of starstruck. My family and friends filled the venue as they came to celebrate the passing of my childhood and the beginning of my womanhood. I was able to dance with my parents and thank them for all the love and work they had poured into raising me as well as allowing me to continue to grow up and begin to seek my own path and follow my choices. The whole celebration was a rite of passage and a beautiful one at that.

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Adolescence: World Event - BLM Movement 

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Adolescence: World Event - BLM Movement 

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Although the BLM movement began in 2013, it wasn't until 2019 that the movement began to gain momentum and reach all corners of the world. With the arrest and possible deportation of English-American rapper 21 Savage, many people were furious and advocated for his release. Within the same year, an Oklahoma teenager named Isaiah Lewis was shot and killed by police. This event triggered what would be a variety of protests asking for equality and for police to stop killing African-Americans due to prejudice behind their skin color. During this time, I was torn between being called a "performance activist" and with being someone who would rather help behind the scenes. It wasn't long before I chose to always protect the voices of those who were struggling and become a source of compassion and equality for all human beings.

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Adolescence: James Marcia's Identity Status Theory 

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Adolescence: James Marcia's Identity Status Theory 

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After finishing chapters 11 and 12, the theory that most resonated with me was James Marcia's Identity Status Theory. The Identity Status basically refers to identity as being coherent and consistent over time. The theory also states that identity status is separated into four categories that each represent the maturity gained as we grow up and begin to identify ourselves based on what we've learned about ourselves over the years. The reason I chose this theory is because of the sense of familiarity in terms of growing up and changing what makes and defines me as a person. As I've grown into a women and an emerging adult, I've had the pleasure of seeing my identity be broken down, reconstructed, and changed various times.

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Personal(Age-Graded) Event: Entering College at 18 and exploring concepts of identity and occupational development

World Event: The Era of Covid-19

Theory: Donald Super's Occupational Development Theory

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At the Brownsville campus with the A+ Team

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Emerging Adulthood: Personal (Age-Graded) Event- The College Life 

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Emerging Adulthood: Personal (Age-Graded) Event- The College Life 

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Everyone says college is easy, but no one ever says that you won't be able to sleep for three days straight with the amount of homework and exams you'll be getting. I have a bit of resentment, is it noticeable? When I entered college at 18, I was fresh-off of high school and ready to experience the "college life" everyone had been raving about and while it is fun, it's a bit lacking as well. Within the first year of college, I cried so much and entered a long period of depression from trying to achieve perfection in my grades. My sleep schedule consisted of me sleeping for three hours and then getting up to start another assignment for another professor. In a way, college has been a nightmare for me and although it does have it's nice days, I'm still waiting to see what the "easy" part about college is.

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Emerging Adulthood: World Event- The Era of Covid-19 

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Emerging Adulthood: World Event- The Era of Covid-19 

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Empty streets, empty airports, empty stores, and a deafening silence was what the year 2020 consisted of. The world was fighting for its' survival as millions of its citizens stayed hidden at home and never came out. The world as we know it was empty of its' usual commotion. At that point, we never knew if we were going to be able to go out freely again, therefore, all we could do was hope. I hoped that I would soon be able to breathe fresh air and escape the four walls that were suffocating me. I hoped that I could re-build human connection as my loneliness was killing me. I hoped that the millions of intrusive thoughts that passed through my head would leave me alone once the pandemic was gone. All I did and all I could do was hope. The world also hoped; they hoped for a better future, for more years to come, for the millions of doctors and scientists to come up with a solution, and for the world to return to its' natural state. However, we're in the year 2021 and the situation hasn't changed much. While the CDC has reported less cases due to the vaccine, it still hasn't fully stopped reporting on the evolution of the virus even mentioning variants such as the Delta variant known to be 3x more deadly than the coronavirus. While I don't see the world getting back to what it once was, I can only hope we achieve some sort of "normal" for all our sakes.

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Emerging Adulthood: Donald Super's Occupational Development 

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Emerging Adulthood: Donald Super's Occupational Development 

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Donald Super's Occupational Development is perhaps the most relatable theory out of all the ones I've mentioned in my previous journals. The reason I relate to it so much is because I've contemplated what I've wanted to do with my life for the longest time. Since we were little kids, we've been taught that our futures depend on education and our career; what we want and wish to do is up to us as long as it makes us happy. However, because I'm immensely indecisive, I didn't have anything in particular that I wanted to do. I spent a good portion of my adolescence trying to come up with careers that suit my interests and personality (crystallization) and it wasn't until recently that I finally decided what I wanted to do(specification). I chose to walk the road of a medical field professional to satisfy my vocation of helping others. I truly believe that walking that path I've chosen will lead me to a sense of self-fulfillment and happiness.