Mental health & failure in STEM, Social media as a space for vulnerability, Takeaways from 3 internships at NASA: The Bloom interviews Ariana Castillo

What is your relationship to failure?

​Failure is a topic in STEM that isn’t really addressed; many folx strive for perfection. I finished my freshman year with a 2.6-2.7ish GPA and I felt like I did not have a place where I was, but I sat down and reevaluated perspective and realised I had set goals for myself that weren’t 100% unattainable. But reaching out and seeking help and resources was instrumental for me and helped me excel.

Mental health/failure intersection is also a huge topic of interest in STEM, where there is a culture that promotes lack of sleep and overworking like badges of honor. I, too, had this mentality. My lack of focus on myself and my mental health facilitated a drastic downward trend where I was diagnosed with multiple illnesses. They were debilitating to the point where I felt guilty for being tired and considered myself lazy for taking the night off from my studies. It got very serious to the point where it was severely life threatening - I was failing classes I would typically do well in and I had no hope. I think the biggest “failure” I’ve had was withdrawing from school to pursue mental health treatment, and when I put the word ‘failure’ in quotations, it is because I saw taking a break and graduating late as failures  [...]