Graduate school personal statement - how much to put in about obstacles ?

My GPA until a couple of years ago was really erratic due to being a caretaker for my abusive, mentally ill mother from the time I was 16. I was having severe panic attacks from juggling the stress during my early college years.





I'm not sure exactly how much of this to put in my personal statement. What I have now is roughly this:





- grew up in extreme abuse and poverty


- essentially became my mother's parent in my teens, worked full time during high school to support us both


- dropped out of high school, ignored advice to forget about education goals, got perfect score on GED, saved money and entered college


- hadn't dealt with the problems I faced in high school (abuse, stress, being a care taker) began to realize I was in trouble and grades were erratic


-should probably taken a break from school during this period, however I did not want to risk losing my chance at education


- began having severe panic attacks to the point of being physically ill, lack of sleep from stress, nightmares


- wake up call when I failed two classes in 1 semester, decided to separate myself from my abusive mother


- next semester took the course that gave me the interest and incentive to become an expert in the field and also another course that has become a hobby / passion of mine (an Asian language)


- renewed my passion and commitment to school, grades improved to almost a 4.0 every semester for the last year and a half


- realized I wanted to go to graduate school to increase my knowledge and ability to do research











I read that you want to avoid being too personal - do you think this is alright? I cut out a lot of stuff (my mom being suicidal, spending time in foster homes, my mom temporarily running away and almost leaving me homeless during my sophomore year) because I don't want to sound too 'poor me-ish' and give too much info.





Any advice on stuff I should take out or put in?





I read a kiss of death on personal statements to grad schools is including mental health issues. I left out the bit about being extremely depressed and withdrawn as a child due to abuse. However I kept the horrible panic attacks I had in my early uni years because they really did affect my grades drastically. Do you think this is alright?





Any info greatly appreciated.|||Explain it all you would be a good counselor.