Aims you are amazing and in no way a failure.

You're great, Aimee. Hold onto those moments when you can see your successes--like when you're teaching and it all goes wonderfully, or when Em does something to melt your heart--and don't overvalue the moments that made you feel bad about yourself.

Aims, I think this is a time where you just go with what is. It sucks, but we all make messes.

I would tell them the generic name, when it was in the record under the brand name

I have had the pharmacy tell me more than once that I don't have prescriptions for what I have prescriptions for, and sometimes it's because I was talking brand name, and they were presumably thinking generic. But? I have a prescription for the brand name, so I think it's totally legit for me to use that term. Also, shorter word.

I just checked my albuterol inhaler, and it says ProAir. Not sure if that's what would be considered the brand name.

And I just got another email from her stating that if I email her again, she is going to report me to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards because I am being "disruptive".

Okay, I'll admit that I'm a shitstirrer in the extreme, however, if I got an email like that from a professor, which, sorry, sounds vaguely threatening, I'd sure as shit be going above her head then, even if I hadn't been so inclined before.

Aims, you have a medical condition for which she haven't been able to afford to get treated on a regular basis. I think the fact that you currently carry the GPA you do is absolutely astounding and a testament to your abilities and dedication as a student. IIRC, you've never asked for any kind of academic exemption before, so to be treated in this manner by a professor is shameful and could potentially reflect poorly on the department.

Then again, I tend to get testy with professors who behave in this sort of manner towards students.

Aimee, I can totally relate to how that feels. It sucks the large rocks to have something that doesn't actually have anything to do with your intelligence or capabilities shake you so hard.

I got a D once (which was actually a gimme because I really should have failed) and it made me doubt everything.

In the end, no one ever asked me about it. I wish I had gotten the GPA I envisioned, but in the end, it was all okay.

It sounds like that professor is a lost cause and you will be well shut of her. I've had a few of those, seriously. But administrators might still help you out.

Luck and satisfactory resolution ~ma coming your way.

For my own sake, I'd take the grade and move on. I think the impact of the grade will fade a lot quicker than the impact of the effort to get it changed.

I'm still mad at the Analysis of Algorithms (see?) prof who wouldn't let me retake a midterm I was sick for. All the other profs let me retake what I missed when I was ill. It was a required course, so I had to retake it. I decided to extend my degree by a semester to accommodate the workload. As a result, I got an A in the retake (even though it didn't replace the original grade), spent all semester flirting with a dreamy guy, and met Colin in my extra semester.

I still hate her, but it kinda worked out.

I don't have any advice, Aims, just lots of love and support for you. Whatever you decide.

I have some caladryl in the car, I just need to get dressed and go get it. But my sister's on her way over, so that's a good motivator. But last time I don't remember it doing a whole lot of good.

The question I'd ask, Aims, is how important is your GPA going to be in the future? Will taking the hit to your GPA negatively affect your future job prospects, or ability to apply to grad schools? If not, then it may be better in the long run to let it go and focus your energy on other things.

(I've had this conversation with another friend who recently went back to school - she's never had anything less than a 4.0 GPA her entire previous school career, and was killing herself trying to maintain it. I had to remind her that the first time she was in college, being a student was her WHOLE LIFE. This time around, she has 2 kids, a mortgage, a coop board to run, etc etc etc, and sometimes it was going to be worth taking a zero on a paper or exam in order to get a full night's sleep and make sure the kids were fed!)