Michelle Garnett, Ph. D. is a clinical psychologist and founder of Minds & Hearts, a clinic specializing in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in Brisbane, Australia. Michelle has over 25 years of experience in all areas of ASD. She was awarded a PhD for her original research on ASD and psychological health in 2007. She co-wrote the first screening tool for Asperger’s syndrome in 1993, and for girls and women in 2011. Michelle has co-authored four books on ASD and has published peer reviewed journal articles. Her most recent book with Barb Cook is a seminal work on the female presentation, Spectrum Women: Walking to the Beat of Autism. She has co-authored three books with Professor Tony Attwood on emotion management for children and adolescents. Michelle also provides ASD training for several Australian universities and has been involved with coverage of autism issues by the likes of The Sydney Morning Herald, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), The Courier Mail, and various other media outlets.

Interviewed by our Executive Director, Kristina Spiropoulos, Dr. Michelle Garnett shares the Minds & Hearts vision and goals, as a private clinic for Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC). She also speaks about the importance and value of education, research, and high-quality psychological services such as, screenings and diagnostic assessments. Michelle explains how these services can lead to breakthroughs in research and provide an understanding about ASC locally and globally. During the interview, Michelle also discusses pragmatics and why they are essential to social communication. Through Michelle and the Minds & Hearts team, one can be more enlightened and grasp the true nature of ASC by “working with the mind, through the heart.”

Marya Hornbacher is an award-winning essayist, journalist, novelist, poet, and survivor. Five of her books have been named New York Times bestsellers. She is best known for authoring “Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia” (1999), which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize; the book discusses her back-and-forth journey between bulimia and anorexia. Marya recounts how she thought she was “fat” at the age of five, how she developed bulimia at nine, anorexia at fourteen, and cycled through eating-disorder clinics hospitals until she weighed 52 pounds at age eighteen; this was when Marya was told she would not live longer than a week. 

Though Marya survived her ordeal with eating disorders, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in her mid-twenties. Marya went on to write “Madness: A Bipolar Life” (2009), which eloquently described the frightening battle of her experience of mental illness. With the proper diagnosis and treatment for bipolar disorder, came self-knowledge and a remarkably stable life for Marya. 

Marya continues to write poetry, non-fiction pieces, and work in the journalism field. Her writing encopasses many topics, including bulimia, anorexia, recovery, mental health, addiction, and spirituality. Marya is hard at work on her seventh book, a collection of essays on the subject of solitude in women’s lives. She is also closely engaged in advocacy for mental health recovery, and is a frequent visitor to community-based mental health groups of all sizes and kinds, including National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). 

In the interview with our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas, Marya shares her compelling story and her journey of recovery. Marya discusses how self awareness and self compassion are vital in the process of healing. She also touches on the unintentional/intentional “glamorization” of eating disorders in the media and how the invasiveness of social media consumption plays a role in one’s mind. In addition, Marya provides outstanding writing advice for aspiring memoirists and writers. One can see the passion, honesty, grit and authenticity with which she speaks and writes. Afterall, Marya has stated, “When you deal with nonfiction, you deal with human characters.”

Victoria Garrick is a former Division I and semi-pro volleyball player, TED Talk speaker, mental health and body-image advocate, podcast host, and self-love enthusiast. She is deeply passionate about inspiring, supporting, and motivating people from all walks of life. Victoria walked on to the number one ranked University of Southern California (USC) volleyball team in 2015 and then became a four-year starter. She won a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC)-12 championship, made two National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Elite Eight appearances, finished first in the PAC-12 conference with the most total digs in 2018, and ended her career with the top five most digs in USC program history.

Despite a successful athletic career, the high-pressure environment and intense demands of her student-athlete schedule took a toll on Victoria’s mental health. She shared her story of battling and overcoming depression, anxiety, and body image issues as a student-athlete, in her 2017 TED Talk, “Athletes and Mental Health: The Hidden Opponent.” In 2019, Victoria founded a non-profit organization and advocacy group with the same name, The Hidden Opponent, that raises awareness for student-athlete mental health and addresses the stigma within sports culture.

As a retired athlete, Victoria has come full circle with her challenges with mental health and body image. She is an advocate for body positivity and body neutrality. Victoria is an inspiration to young girls and athletes everywhere encouraging them to love their bodies and to be vocal about their mental health. She continues to travel the country speaking on college campuses about mental health and creates daily content for her army of over one million people, who follow her message of authenticity and self-care on social media. 

Interviewed by our Founder and President, Alexandra Nicholas, Victoria shares her story of overcoming the burden of mental health, the important lessons that she has learned about herself on and off the volleyball court, and how the stigma of athletes with mental health has evolved. It is evident that Victoria, through her dedication and support, has created a community of athletes that share their struggles, which helps others know they are not alone. Victoria says, “I hope to influence people to be the best version of themselves, and I hope to do this every day.”

Judith Brisman, Ph.D., C.E.D.S.,(Certified Eating Disorder Specialist) is a renowned expert in the field of eating disorders, as well as a sought-after supervisor, speaker and consultant. She opened the first center in the United States dedicated to the treatment of bulimia, the Bulimia Treatment Associates (BTA). Over time, BTA was renamed the Eating Disorder Resource Center (EDRC) as the treatment program expanded to include work with anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder and other body image disorders. Dr. Brisman was founding director and director of training at EDRC in New York for over thirty-five years. Since then, Dr. Brisman offers individualized interpersonal psychoanalysis and psychotherapy services to clients in recovery from eating disorders. Her work focuses on the need for direct intervention with disordered eating and related behavioral health issues, while maintaining a sensitive exploration of the psychological factors involved. All of her treatment plans are individualized and intimate, drawing on theories of interpersonal psychology as well as evidence-based treatment practices including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). 

Dr. Brisman is a co-author of Surviving an Eating Disorder, which was the first book of its kind to offer effective solutions and support for family and friends of those with eating disorders. Also, she is on the editorial board of Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention, an associate editor for the journal Contemporary Psychoanalysis, and an expert in running training seminars and presentations, regarding the interpersonal treatment of eating disorders. Dr. Brisman is on faculty at the William Alanson White Institute, where she has also been a supervisor of psychotherapy. 

Interviewed by our Founder & President, Alexandra Nicholas, Dr. Brisman offers a crash course in understanding the difference between someone who eats disorderly and someone with an eating disorder. She also shares some typical traits of those with eating disorders: perfectionism, genetic disposition, and susceptibility to the pressures of society. Those pressures, mainly from social media, distort weight parameters and the false perception that looking thin equals self-confidence and self actualization. Dr. Brisman says, "People individually have the bullets. The culture shoots the gun.”

Aaron Fisher is a director, editor, writer, and actor. He graduated from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Aaron is known for his work in the short film Love Out of Mind (2014), the television mini-series Single and Baller (2018), and recently the film Inside the Rain (2019). Inside the Rain is a loosely based auto-biographical rom-com film; the main character Ben, played by Aaron himself, struggles with the roller-coaster like challenges of bipolar disorder.

Aaron’s successful film industry career and his journey with bipolar disorder attracted the attention of our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas. In the interview, Aaron narrates the challenges he has had while living with bipolar disorder. Aaron discusses his medication struggles, his past hospitalizations, the voluntary ECT treatments her sought after, the college discrimination he endured, and the stigma that surrounds mental illness.

Aaron’s personality gleams when he talks about breaking into the film industry. His awe-inspiring success story is truly impressive. Aaron has stated, “If you’re not thinking about success from day one, then you’re not going to make it.” Inspired by Aaron’s success story that he shares with Alexandra, we only have one more question to pose, “Can we have your autograph?”