The Cake
Why We Need to Shed Mental Health Stigma
A sufferer of anxiety disorders urges us all to do better
As someone who has learned to tame anxiety, OCD intrusive thoughts, and compulsive hair-pulling disorder (trichotillomania), I’m driven to shatter mental health stigma. Through my work at HabitAware, I know stigma stands in the way of our collective healing.
In July 2019, I gave a TEDx Talk that explains my mental health and startup story. They are one and the same:
As co-founder of HabitAware, I’ve taken my own pain and turned it into my purpose. For 25-plus years, I hid the hair pulling because of stigma. Fast-forward to 2015: My team and I created a smart bracelet, Keen, to help people become aware of their restless hands — and minds. We’ve helped thousands in more than 50 countries take control of compulsive hair pulling and its sister conditions: compulsive skin picking (dermatillomania) and chronic nail biting (onychophagia). These “restless hand” behaviors are collectively known as body-focused repetitive behaviors…
