telling tales
Below are video renditions of selections from our Write On! Alumni. You may also listen to these stories on our “Telling Tales” podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Anchor, Google, Breaker, Pocket Casts, and RadioPublic.

from the virtual class of 2021

Cherokee

Cherokee shares what it’s like to live inside her head in her piece entitled, “A Volcano.”

Deanna

Deanna shares her story of self-harming and coming out as transgender.

Yove

Yove shares what it’s like to go through gay conversion therapy in a piece entitled “It’s For Your Own Good, Honey.”

Lex

Lex shares her story of finding herself through mental illness

from the virtual class of 2020

Miles

Miles shares a powerful TED Talk on suicide, the pandemic, and a hope for a new generation.

Bea

Bea’s piece discusses childhoold sexual abuse and its impact on her life

from the spring class of 2019

Sara

Sara shares her #metoo story in a powerful spoken word piece.

Kim

Kim shares her struggles with addiction and the scars you collect when living with a mental health condition.

Justin

Justin shares his personal journey with living with Schizophrenia.

Deidre

Deidre shares how her faith has helped her in her mental health journey.

Meredith

Meredith shares what she wishes people knew about mental illness.

Jamie

Jamie shares a love story and what it’s like to be “on both sides of the rope” while having bipolar.

Riffat

Riffat shares his thought provoking questions and mental health struggles.

Keith

Ketih shares what it’s like living with anxiety and depression and how others can be an ally to him and those like him.
Telling Tales from the class of 2018

Lauren

Lauren shares the raw and emotional story of the impact her father’s past has on her mental health.

Sara

Sara shares an intimate look at 9 days inside a psychiatric ward.

Leslie

Leslie challenges the fears derived from stigma and addresses the notion that we end up like our parents.

Cayla

Cayla shares a series of vignettes based on her experiences with depression. Hello?

Freddy

Freddy shares his story so we can better understand how he envisions recovery.

Josh

Josh shares his story of life with depression and the hope he has for better days ahead.

Katie

Katie has always been a writer. Listen as she shares a piece of her ongoing journey towards wellness.

Paolo

Paolo knows the best time to dance is 10:38 while doing the dishes. Join him on this dance as he shares an emotional piece.

Saley

Saley shares her “struggle analysis” and gives hope to those on their journey towards wellness.
Telling Tales from the class of 2017

Em

Em lets you peek into her diary as she reads letters to her younger self that describe the loss, self-harm, heartbreak, abuse, and hope she’s experienced.

Fallyn

Fallyn not only tells her story, she helps you feel it. Her story of emotional and physical abuse and loneliness is raw, unfiltered, and as real as it gets.

Kat

Kat takes you on a journey into the convoluted mental health care system and the isolation she endures while seeking recovery.
Sylvia

Sylvia wants to help others who may be struggling with anxiety feel less alone. Listen as she details a day in her life with anxiety as she works toward recovery.
Jess

Jess shares the heartbreak and the lessons she learned from letting someone close to her learn about her inner most secrets and mental health challenges.

Sam

Sam shares a little known story of trauma from the Sandy Hook tragedy and makes us think about how stigma deepens when mental illness is falsely portrayed in the media.
Jaime

Jaime didn’t have a choice in facing her trauma. A survivor of child abuse that resulted in a very public court battle, she shares her tale of PTSD, self-doubt, and her commitment to advocacy.
Kelsey

Kelsey is a poet who shares an introspective piece on substance abuse and the struggles of silencing the urge to “answer the call” of addiction.