Are personal essays almost always told from 3rd person?

Yes, first and second person voice are not appropriate for use in an essay. First person is redundant; the essay is the voice of the author. It is therefore not necessary to use "I" or "Me" to indicate the speaker. The audience already knows the speaker. Second person appeals to the reader, and you never want to appeal to the reader directly. This is a form of logical fallacy that reaches out of the writing. So, the only option left is third person.