Hi, guys —

I have scrupulosity and have recently been stressing over stuff I did in high school and my first year of university. I had a problem of cheating on things like assignments, quizzes, and tests in high school which followed into my first year of schooling.

While I wasn't doing these things all the time, they had been a very frequent and bad habit. Doing this in high school boosted my GPA to 3.6, which alongside my SAT score allowed me to get a scholarship to a local 4-year school (which wasn't my first school choice).

Like I said above, this bad habit of cheating followed me throughout the first year of my college journey, which was filled with many general education classes.

After my first year was done a couple of events led to me exploring my faith again and returning to the Church. I realized many things I did back then were sins, which made me realize I didn't know a lot of things. This conversion was also aided by the Newman Center up on the campus.
I made a firm amendment not to cheat anymore and strive for honesty, which led me (this semester) to having all A’s in core classes. I shared my concerns with a trusted confessor where I mentioned making possible reparation for the damage and if I could even benefit from it (like applying for honors).

He said to trust in the Lord’s Mercy and to be a (mentor/model) student from here on out.

I am still having scruples over this, particularly around the scholarship. I've applied for others and feel like I am cheating others out of it, but from what I have read, a lot of the funds aren't used and just transferred to the next round of scholarships, not to mention, if I were to report myself, that would lead to expulsion and getting kicked out of the house, all of which is not going to help my already depleted mental battery.

Despite that, I want to hear all your thoughts on this matter. I am open to all ideas, but as of right now, I'm trusting in my confessor’s judgment.

Drake