I live with bipolar disorder and severe anxiety and have all my adult life. I was a successful businessman until I lost it all due to my mental illness. After 14 lost years, I took a stand-up comedy class for folks with a mental illness. It changed everything. I went from my mental illness having control over me to finding the humor in my experiences and regaining control of my life. Thus began my recovery. Today I teach stand-up comedy to other folks with a mental illness and perform on stage. We find humor in our pain and tell our stories one joke at a time. We let people know that they are not alone and that it is okay to laugh about our challenges, and we shatter stigma while we are at It. My comedy has been described as smart, inspirational, and laugh out loud funny. I blog for bphope.com where my posts have been read by over a million people with the most common comment being "OMG That's Me! you're telling my story, I don't feel so alone now." I share my story with complete openness, honesty, and plenty of humor. I tell what it is really like suffering in silence, hiding in the shadows, pretending to be okay, being an imposter, experiencing recurring panic attacks, not being present for my wife and kids, and thinking suicide is the only option, and then coming out the other side. My posts can be read online or in my best-selling book, OMG That's Me! Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Anxiety, Panic Attacks, and more... which has sold over 17,000 copies. Sharing my experiences with openness, honesty and laughter helps others begin or advance in their journey of recovery. It helps people who are not affected by mental illness to really know what it is like to live with it developing empathy and understanding. Thus, shattering stigma. Links: Facebook LinkedIn Book

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