It should be up to the OP with input from family and guidance counselor to determine how much and what to disclose regarding their health issues. Other than very general comments, IMO this is not for people who do not know the student, the exact issues, and their potential implication for the future to debate.
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I agree. With that said, OP has little control over what the HS counselor or teachers end up writing, if anything, about the health issue…no matter what they talked about and/or what OP puts on a brag sheet.
Separately, many HS transcripts show the number of absences each semester. So, that’s something OP has to find out. If the absences are apparent, but not addressed in OP’s app, that will be a problem for some schools.
If I were to read OP’s app, I would likely struggle to understand how they have participated in ECs yet missed so much school…I would specifically look to see if activities are listed for 11th grade. I would also want to know if the chronic health issues have resolved. If they haven’t I would wonder if the student will be able to succeed in college. I would prefer an adult address these things in their LoR.
One option for OP might be to have 12th grade teachers write LoRs, even tho they would have only had OP in class for a few months prior to some application due dates.
Hopefully OP comes back and engages with this thread.
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I am not sure how much can legally be disclosed about health issues (other than the fact there were absences) without permission.
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Thank you for the response. The reason I could do ECs at a high level is due to the nature of my health issues (without going into details, chronic migraines and dizziness). The reason I don’t attend school is more due to the environment than actually completing the work, so ECs/research I can do at home/online are much more accessible.
I do plan to submit a supplemental LOR from my research mentor, since it will be very strong. I am mostly just worried about my main teacher LORs.
Thank you for the response. I agree that health comes first. However, my health has been steadily improving recently due to finally getting on the right medications. Since I will start college in over a year (if I wind up going), I’m hopeful that at that point, I’ll be in a much better place healthwise.
First of all, thank you so much for the response.
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Yes, I totally agree, but I hope I can get to a place where my health is not severe enough to impact my schooling.
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I have definitely had to fight tooth and nail to keep up a 4.0. It was a rough experience for me since school has always come very easily.
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I totally agree, but I want to maximize my chances since I’ve worked so hard.
I will definitely consider that! Part of me is worried about not addressing it, since I don’t want colleges to wonder why my LORs will be good at best (not great).
Thank you so much for the thoughtful response.
I was actually planning to talk to my counselor about whether absences can be removed from my transcript. It’s kind of insane how much school I’ve missed and I don’t want AOs to think I was just handed a free 4.0 despite never showing up. (That was absolutely not the case; I just worked very hard at home when I couldn’t attend).
My health issues are on an upward trajectory. They will never be fully resolved, but I am on the right medications/treatments. All I can hope at this point is that AOs don’t shut me out 
I wrote this in another response: The reason I could do ECs at a high level is due to the nature of my health issues (without going into details, chronic migraines and dizziness). The reason I don’t attend school is more due to the environment than actually completing the work, so ECs/research I can do at home/online are much more accessible.
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Thank you for the response!
If I did address my health issues, it would definitely be supplemental and to provide context, not to generate sympathy or make people feel bad for me. My profile is good, but I want to make it clear that this is not my best performance. Yes my ECs are good, yes my GPA is good, but that took twice as much effort for me this year as last year. I basically want to signal that I can do more (without making excuses).
I didn’t mention my health at all in my summer programs. I think I might just have been unlucky this year, or my profile wasn’t what they were looking for.
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There’s really nothing to worry about. They will be what they will be. Tons of great colleges will accept you. You worked hard - and it will pay off - whether by name or financial reward or whatever else.
In life, you will make your success - not if you went to U Michigan instead of Iowa. Plenty of Ivy leaguers work for non-selective school kids.
You are the secret ingredient - so have no fear!!
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Thank you for the response.
Honestly, I go to a really mediocre public school, and my teachers often don’t even respond to my emails, so I seriously doubt they would be willing to dedicate any time to one-on-one zoom sessions. I try to email them when I miss class, but most of the time they don’t respond or it takes them a couple weeks. My guidance counselor is very responsive so I am hoping he can provide some context in his letter.
Yeah, I’m pretty worried about lacking the “character” aspect. It’s also tough because when I DO attend school, I don’t participate much/actively because I am constantly behind and also my health really impacts my ability to function socially. Anyway.
Thank you again. 
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If you are healthy and able to attend class next year, work to engage in the classroom and consider asking senior year teachers for LORs.
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If you find the right medications, you may very well improve a lot and enough to attend high school almost full time. One of my kids had similar issues and tried quite a few meds, but once the right one was found things got a lot better.
The problem with migraines (and central vertigo or vestibular migraines, which might explain the dizziness) is that they obviously involve the brain, and the brain also needs to recover- all of which means lost time for work. You can’t cram, or stay up all night, or push yourself too much to catch up.
There is a good chance you will be okay, not perfect but good enough. If you still have migraines, reduced course load can be one of the most helpful accommodations at college and the extra time it takes to graduate should be covered by financial aid.
Achieving a 4.0 and continued EC at home with migraines, shows a lot of character. The guidance counselor should get that across but our counselor actually had me write about it as the parent. Congrats on your strength and commitment.
There is fairly standard advice in this area. I will PM you.
Unfortunately, the PM function is not functioning for me at this time. Not sure why.
Since you are missing school a lot, do you have a 504 accommodation plan or a health plan with your school district? Where I am, this would be the case with students who are missing a lot of classes. You don’t have to tell us here, but what accommodations do you have (if any in addition to no penalty for missed classes).
Your teachers must know about your excused absences. That being the case, why wouldn’t they be able to write you a LOR?
This is worrisome. How do your parents, medical team feel about you leaving home for college?
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The OP is on meds that might be effective. There is no reason not to go to college if that is the case. Kids with disabilities including medical disabilities are able to attend with accommodations and sometimes make use of medical leaves to tweak things. Maintaining a 4.0 and an EC BEFORE effective meds bodes well for success at college. The application can get this across with a short, simple “additonal info” section and a guidance counselor note, which can be written or guided by the family/student if needed.
Wishing all the best to the OP for a full and speedy recovery. But not to be able to function socially due to illness is not a good indicator of a successful transition to living independently, doing laundry, eating regular meals, plus balancing all the academic tasks and stressors required.
Many kids with chronic conditions adjust beautifully and many do not. There is no shame in living at home and commuting if the demands of “adulting” prove to be too much on top of taking a full academic load. And keeping an open mind doesn’t cost anything…
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Not sure if it is the same but my S has learning issues and we had to sign a waiver allowing that to be disclosed in college application (likely in a LOR) by the HS. Otherwise the guidance counselor said they could not legally disclose. I imagine it would be similar for medical issues particularly with HIPAA regulations. This is something for the OP to pursue.
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@happy1 Schools cannot disclose any special education issues to anyone for any reason without parent consent.
If this student has a 504 accommodation plan or an IEP, the issues in those cannot be disclosed without consent.
My question more revolves around IF this student has a 504 or health accommodation plan. If so, this should be discussed with their case manager.
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It’s mostly that I am constantly fatigued, dizzy, etc, which obviously makes me less able to function in terms of interacting with people energetically. But I am able to function socially and do normal tasks; it’s just hard for me. My parent/neurologist are hopeful that my situation will improve between now and college. I also want to have the option of going, but if I truly am unable to next year, then I can choose not to attend.
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