“I still battle with depression, anxiety, and PTSD, but I have learned healthy ways to cope. I have made friends with these demons — I hold their hands, I know what awakens them, and what calms them.”

“My greatest mission in life is to remove the scrutiny around mental illness in the church community and in the Black community.”

“I have faced things that I thought would destroy me. My voice is important and if I allow my words to carry I can be a powerful force in the world.”

“I’ve survived all of the days I thought I wouldn’t. I can tell you I will be here for another birthday and another Christmas, when a couple weeks ago I couldn’t tell you if I’d be here another minute.”

“I gathered the pieces. I tried to run. I came back, I showed up. There is still so much work to do. But I am here, and I didn’t always believe I would be. And I feel more alive today than I ever have.”

“Today, I have found hope through the right dosage of medication, dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), writing, blogging, running, yoga, and love.”

“Deep inside of me, I found this strength and determination in myself that I never really knew I had. I had to find that little light inside myself that I thought I had lost forever.”

“My journey may not be pretty, but it has molded me into the person still standing here today.”

“In a way, beginning Narratives of Hope has been a celebration of how far I’ve come. I am still standing and I’m alive, and it has never felt so undoubtedly clear that this is my purpose in my life.”

“I’m here today thanks to my past self who somehow had the resilience and the bravery to keep going through those countless moments she wished she didn’t have to. If she could see me now, I think she’d agree it was worth it.”

“That is the kind of honesty no one wants to think about. But it is the kind of honesty that will keep me alive.”