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Mental Health and Accommodations - Desperately Seeking Advice
Hey everyone. I'd greatly appreciate it if I could get your advice on my situation regarding whether it's worth seeking accommodations.
I was diagnosed with clinical depression and anxiety disorder in the summer of 2015, and was put on anti-depressants; and eventually beta blockers and lorazepam (a benzo). The first time I studied for the LSAT was from Jan-May 2016 and used the LSAT trainer, with hopes of writing the exam in June. My highest PT was 156, and so I postponed the exam. I then studied from June to December, and used 7Sage. I sought a fresh start, while also focusing on my weaknesses. I just couldn't seem to break the 150's barrier. I eventually wrote the LSAT in June, and this time I tried Kaplan (which I learnt was a big mistake) from Feb to May because i felt an in-person class with homework would keep me further on my toes. However, i cancelled because i knew i bombed it. I won't blame my performance entirely on my diagnosed mental disability, but it definitely does not help. I was determined to get into the 160's, and used Powerscore from July to August, and registered for the September exam. I cancelled, because i just could not break into the 160's. At the time, I put down my failure to get a high score on the fact that i was on medication. I know that it's supposed to level the playing field, but I was having trouble connecting logical chains, and I eventually learnt that SSRI's and other anti-depressants can in fact impair or inhibit your ability to perform at your best cognitively. My doctor suggested that i taper off the medication. I did, and studied without them. Here's where it gets tricky: without the medication, i think more clearly if even just a bit, but my depressive and anxious symptoms increase a bit as well. It's a cycle. I get depressed because I can't get the score I want, and if I take anti-depressants to combat those feelings, my brain feels fuzzy and I feel mentally jaded, lethargic and foggy. The best analogy I can give is to imagine driving in your car on a clear night with the lights on full beam, but you only can only see fog everywhere. That's how I felt. I wasn't even overly stressed, maybe the same as any other student studying for the LSAT. My brain just felt heavy and my mental clarity seemed to be fading every time I studied. Perhaps other people with depression/anxiety can relate?
I tried different study methods, different courses/prep courses, and for two years I did meditation, yoga, healthy eating. and exercising. Unfortunately nothing helped, and I eventually wrote the LSAT in December while using Powerscore. During the exam, I experienced the same emotions i did while writing PT's and the September exam: trouble concentrating and retaining information, reading sentences various times to understand it, misreading words, reading words but not actually grasping what they mean. I expected the worst, and unsurprisingly, I got a 153. I feel like I've exhausted all my options now, and that it would be pointless to take another prep course or keep studying. No matter how many hours I put in, how many different methods I try, how many times I change my lifestyle/habits, nothing works. I didn't seek accommodations before because I didn't think I needed them or that anything was wrong with me. I just kept thinking that I wasn't trying my best or focusing enough. However, I learnt that mental illness and its treatments can definitely have an impact on the way you think, react to and grasp information. Another analogy I can give is to imagine a big square with a small circle placed in the center. The circle is my brain power when I'm studying/taking PT's, and the surrounding area is the fog/haziness I experience.
Now, do you think its worth seeking accommodations? I was only diagnosed in my 3rd year of university, so I don't have any prior history or proof of receiving previous accommodations. I only have notes from my psychiatrist and family doctor. I majored in History, and so I didn't really need accommodations during exams, because I was mostly assessed on essays and group work. Also, the fact that I got 153 definitely does not help. Do you guys think its worth paying $1800 for an upcoming psychoeducational assessment and seeking accommodations, or does the fact that I scored just a bit above average hinder my chances now?
My apologies for such a long read, but I do not know who else to ask.
Comments
Hi! Sorry to hear you story. I went through something similar during my prep. I think the first thing you need to ask yourself is what is the cause of your depression and anxiety. If it is the test, you have to just ignore it. I know that sounds hard but here me out. Think about it like this. What is the point of this test. To get into law school. But is it the only requirement? No, certainly not. You owe it to yourself to give it your best effort and that's all you can do. So what? It's only a test. I personally refused to let determine my emotions. Granted, it did take me a while to so, well over a year at that. But I was a much happier person when I did.
So many times, we let the weight of the test dictate our worth and that just simply is not true. We are worth so much more as people and the test has nothing to do with how intelligent we are. Law school is meant to weed out those who lack self-confidence and the LSAT is just the first step on that journey. Believe in yourself.
Make sure you are doing things that make you happy. For me, when the test really bothered me one day, I would say F*** this, go do a workout or play some video games, and release all my anger through either or both activity. Sometimes I would come back to it after, sometimes I wouldn't. But interspersing my passions into my studies really helped to keep me going.
You can do it! Just believe in yourself, don't let this test dictate who you are, and do things you enjoy. You got this!
@JustDoIt thank you so much, it means a lot. But I take it from your comment that i'm better off studying than seeking accommodations?
Maybe the two don't need to be mutually exclusive. Seek accommodations but also keep studying. If you get accomodations, be sure to incorpoate the accomodations into your PT-ing sessions and that you're scoring in your desired range before taking the test.
My advice to you is, based on what I read, it seems you are hesitant to commit to studying for the test. I don't mean to imply that you haven't committed or the time you've put in was insufficient. Just that it may be beneficial to first, focus on getting the fundamentals down without a specific test date in mind. While it's true that you eventually have to write the test, try to be comfortable with the fact that you don't know when you'll write it.
I think that panic of 'I'm not scoring where I should be and the test is x days away' will leads to the perpetuation of a disastrous cycle: anxiety caused by test day inching closer; anxiety of not scoring where you should be; depression in lack of results; lack of motivation; repeat. I know I've had that happen myself. The worst is when you feel you haven't improved and are demoralized and you somehow rationalize that it was a bad example...so you immediately do another PT or section or whatever to prove to yourself that that one result was an outlier. However, you're not in the right mindspace conductive to learning so its counter-productive.
Like what @JustDoIt stated, don't let the weight of the test dictate your worth or mood.
I can't really comment on the rest of it but my heart goes out to you,I hope you get the accomodations you seek.
I think you definitely could make a strong argument for getting accommodations. I think my question is, do you think it will help you? Does more time help with the brain fog and recalling things?
Maybe try taking a PT with the accommodation you would like - 25% more time perhaps? I know 50% more time is a common one, not sure if they do 25% more. But I'd be curious to see if that helps you.
I definitely really feel for you. It's so tough to figure out the right combination of medicine to keep us healthy and still productive. But obviously, you'll have to not just get past the LSAT, but studying and testing in law school as well. So I would try to just think of this as a healthy learning process to figure out what is going to be the best situation for you when it comes to studying and testing in general. If you figure this out for the LSAT, you'll know how to approach things for law school too. Whether extra time helps, or you need to try different medication or levels of medication... whatever it is.
Best wishes for getting what you need!
No idea whether you'll get the accommodation. If you can easily afford the $1800, I guess it's worth a shot. Being granted extra time is very likely to result in you scoring much higher on the test.
Also you didn't ask, but I think it's worth bringing up:
- Until you're able to manage your anxiety, are you sure you want to enter law school and then become a lawyer? Once you're out of school, I think you'll have more control over your workload. But while you're in law school, especially that first year, it's going to be hard.
You don't need $1800 testing to prove that you have a psychological disability. What you need is a compelling statement from your therapist/psychiatrist explaining why you need the requirements you need. Remember that a diagnosis of depression, anxiety, etc on its own is not what can get you an accommodation, but rather, how you and your doctor present your argument. (Good practice for the future?) Essentially, it's important to explain that meds will hinder your ability to perform well, and not being on meds will do the same. Convey that this is your only option to test at your potential. One problem you may run into is that you've already scored above a 150 without accommodations. Unfortunately, scoring above the median on a past test can hurt you with this stuff. You'll need to address that.
I actually just submitted an accommodation request for psychological disability; if you want to talk about this any more or have any questions, please reach out!
Also, @10000019 has a point-- and I think I can speak for both of us in saying that this is out of genuine concern for your wellbeing. My mom actually brought up the same concern for me. However, I think that you should follow your dream (assuming you wholeheartedly believe it's a good idea). In order for me to go to law school, I'm going to therapy and doing whatever I have to do so that my mind and body can be less of an anxious mess. This stuff can get better over time, and you don't have to live with this degree of disability forever.
It's also important to remember that one third of law school students don't return for their second year. I'm mentioning this because it speaks to the amount of stress that law school really carries. My anxiety is so crazy that I know I'm prone to getting overly stressed and dropping out. For that reason, I won't be applying to any stretch schools. I would like to actually graduate from law school haha. I think that as long as you're really honest with yourself and make a solid plan, you'll do a great job in law school and in life.
I agree with everyone , if you have paper trail and history to prove it go get accommodations and on top of that modify your study strategies. Remember sometimes switching course material too many times can throw you off
I would say so. I am not saying not to seek accommodations. You may very well have a good case. However, accommodations are extremely unlikely and very difficult to get. You even said yourself that it will cost a lot of money in order to get properly tested. And even then, there is no guarantee that you will actually receive accommodations. Further, where you were only diagnosed recently as opposed to this being a long standing issue, it only adds to the likelihood that you won't receive accommodations.
The LSAC got sued in 2012, so I've heard it's easier to get now.
True but that doesn't mean that it is easy. On scale of 1 to 10, it was probably once a 10 but now its an 8
Yeah it's definitely not easy lol. The majority of people still get turned down.
In the 2016-2017 year, 79% of those who requested accommodations were approved. I'm not saying that it is easy, but compared to those requesting between June 2007 and February 2014, who had an approval range between 44% and 55%, it seems significantly "easier". For lack of a better word. And definitely the majority of people are not getting turned down. I'd like to believe that LSAC is now just accepting appropriate documentation and not denying those who legitimately need it, as seemed to be the case before the law suit.
The number of people who receive accommodations is very small compared to the total number of test takers (June 2012 - Feb 2017: 513,038 test takers and 4,967 accommodated with extra time, 727 accommodated with standard time). So, I don't think it's easy in the sense that every one can apply and expect to have a 79% of approval. But I think with appropriate medical documentation and a legitimate disability that makes whatever accommodations you are seeking necessary, LSAC is likely to approve it, if last years statistics are any indication for this year's cycle.
https://www.lsac.org/docs/default-source/research-(lsac-resources)/tr-17-03.pdf
https://www.lsac.org/docs/default-source/research-(lsac-resources)/tr-12-01.pdf
I hesitate to use those published statistics because the OP already has a respectable test score on file. For that reason, it might be uphill battle.
@10000019 that was exactly what I mentioned in a private message. A score over 150 without accommodations will actually hurt you when applying for accommodations. There would have to be a really solid paper trail of disability treatment and a compelling argument for accommodations. Unfortunately, getting the LSAC to ignore that 153 is going to require very strong documentation.
Yes I can understand that. Each person's documents/needs are going to be different so the likelihood of approval or denial is just speculation. OP will have to have significant documentation that LSAC deems sufficient to approve accommodation while having a prior decent score. My comment was more for those that were talking about things being easier or not since the lawsuit.
It's interesting to note though that of the J12-F17 accommodated testers (5694), 558 were testers who had tested once before without accommodations. And in J07-F12, only 166 out of 3873 accommodated testers had tested before without accommodations. 9.8% vs 4.3%... which could be the result of LSAC approving a greater percentage of prior non-acc takers in recent years or it could be that a higher percentage of people applied after a non-acc test or a plethora of other possibilities.... I don't know, but it is interesting.
I enjoy data and the whole accommodation situation has the potential to change LSAT dynamics if it is possible that testers are able to take advantage or "fake" the LSAC. Time will tell I suppose.
I'm not making the claim that OP should or should not seek accommodations. That is something that OP will need to determine with the help of his/her doctors. And I'm definitely not saying that OP's specific circumstance will make him/her likely or unlikely to be approved, that will be dependent on the documentation submitted. Just throwing out some statistics that aren't generalizations about the easiness or hardness of approval.
Thanks everyone for your feedback and advice!
Your perseverence is to be applauded.
I agree. And never give up!