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Are You Ready to Brotek?

The wind blew cold on our faces while we hiked to my car to grab my bags. It was November 14th, 2012 and I had just gotten into Milwaukee to speak at a youth leadership conference. My friend Heather had heard that I needed a place to stay and invited me to crash at her apartment.

As we walked the city streets back to her apartment, Heather began to pour out her soul to me and the words that landed in my ears caught me off guard. I couldn’t believe that the young lady that I was walking with could possibly be dealing with even the mildest forms of depression and anxiety. She told me about how she use to get so anxious she couldn't go to class or even sit in her dorm room for extended periods of times by herself. She also talked about how she hated the classes that she had to take.

Listening to her story broke my heart. So I tried my best to console her. I agreed that Gen Eds are a pain, but a very good way to learn self-discipline. I told her that if she could find the will to study things she has absolutely no interest in, then she’ll become even more focused to deal with those mundane tasks that would come along with her chosen profession of photography. She smiled and thanked me for the words of encouragement and the next day I packed up and headed off to my conference. I later found out that Heather not only battled with depression and anxiety, but also overcame anorexia.

Today I had the opportunity to interview Heather for this post and I’m proud to say that she has made tremendous strides in her battle with depression and anxiety. If you talk with Heather, she’ll openly share that she deals with these feelings, but for her, these feelings are anything but debilitating. She attributes her turnaround to seeing a “dope” therapist who has really helped Heather break things down, low dosage medication, working out, and eating healthy.

But even though Heather has had a huge turnaround, it wasn't too long ago that she went through an experience that she described as “dark.” After closing down her first business, Passion Pursuit Photography, Heather felt that she had lost her passion and drive. She said, “I never thought of killing myself, but I also didn’t want to be on Earth.” She struggled through the darkness, but stated that she learned from every moment that she spent in it, until she came out into the light with a new found inspiration and passion.

This inspiration and passion would once again manifest itself through Heather’s creativity and amazing ability to network. On July 29th, 2014 Heather launched Illwaukee, a digital magazine with the goal of exposing the “ill” or cool places that Milwaukee has to offer. The city that Heather felt was the source of all her troubles has now become the fuel to her fire. "If I could convince myself to love this city, then I know I can convince other people to as well,” Heather told me as she laughed at the irony of it all.

While I talked with Heather and took notes, I couldn't help but be energized by her enthusiasm. It really is hard to believe that this motivated, young lady is battling with depression. What is not hard to believe, is that she’s winning.

LIVE it Up,


ZZ

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