Rebecca Alexander is a psychotherapist, keynote speaker, group fitness instructor, disability advocate, extreme athlete, and the award-winning author of the book, Not Fade Away: A Memoir of Senses Lost and Found. Rebecca earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan and two master’s degrees from Columbia University in Public Health and Clinical Social Work. In addition, she has received post-graduate training at the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy at the Center for the Study of Anorexia and Bulimia and her psychodynamic psychotherapy training from the American Institute for Psychoanalysis. Rebecca is also certified in Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), she is fluent in American Sign Language (ASL), and Tactile Sign Language.

Rebecca was diagnosed at the age of nineteen with Usher Syndrome III, a rare genetic mutation disorder that causes a progressive loss of hearing,  and vision; it also causes balance issues. Rebecca is completely deaf without the usage of cochlear implants and suffers from severe vision impairment, called retinitis pigmentosa. This vision impairment progresses both centrally and peripherally, resulting in tunnel vision; or as Rebecca calls it, “donut” vision. 

Usher’s Syndrome III has not stopped Rebecca from living out her dreams. She has a full-time psychotherapy practice, working with individuals, couples, and families, specializing in the treatment of anxiety, depression, grief/loss, disordered eating, disability, and terminal illness. Rebecca has participated in the 600-mile San Francisco to Los Angeles AIDS Lifecycle ride and has also reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, named Uhuru Point. Her book, Not Fade Away: A Memoir of Senses Lost and Found, will be the subject of a major motion picture in the future. Rebecca has presented for TEDx Cape May “What’s The Story?” and has been seen on many talk shows, such as the Today Show. Rebecca has also been featured in many major publications such as, The New York Times and The Boston Globe. 

Interviewed by our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas, Rebecca shares information about her diagnosis, the accommodations she uses daily, and how her remaining senses are heightened. Rebecca advocates for discussion about living with adversity and acknowledges the significance of feeling all her emotions, including loss. Throughout the interview, Rebecca amazes with gumption, grace, and her ingenious nature. She has been quoted saying, “Living with a disability means you have to live creatively, always working to find alternative, imperfect ways to make life work.”

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?”

Marissa LaRocca is an award winning author of, two #1 bestsellers on Amazon, Starving in Search of Me: A Coming-of-Age Story of Overcoming an Eating Disorder (a confessional and self-help guide)and Finding Self-Acceptance and Everyone Is a Freak: Anonymous Confessions About Sex, Sexuality, and Desire. She is also the CEO and Founder of Pilot Press.

Through her innovative publishing company, Marissa empowers authors and influencers with her book coach strategy and savvy knowledge of writing a book from start to finish. Marissa also is a contributing editor for the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She advocates daily for women’s health and gay rights.

Marissa struggled to find her identity as a young woman, battling Anorexia Nervosa and elucidating her sexuality and authentic self. Marissa is truly one-of-a-kind; confident, chic, creative, and clever. On her website page for Pilot Press, Marissa remarkably states, “I’ll be beside you the entire time like a warm, comforting beverage. I’ll be your partner. I’ll be your mentor. I’ll keep you motivated and accountable, and I’ll break down the process into one step at a time.” Marissa is the advocate and best friend you did not know you needed, until now. 

Ben Aaron is an Emmy award winning television reporter for Pix11 and the former cohost of Pickler & Ben. In this funny and earnest conversation with D&A founder Alexandra Nicklas, he talks about his experiences living...and thriving...with obsessive compulsive disorder. 

You can learn more about Ben by following him on Instagram (@benaarontv) or watching his new show Renovation Realities: Ben and Ginger which follows his experience renovating a home with his wife, ABC Chief Meteorologist Ginger Zee, whom we have previously spoken to about her own experiences with mental health. Ben is also the author of the children's book "Where the Sun Goes," which you can purchase here.

Our founder Alexandra Nicklas recently had the opportunity to interview ABC Chief Meteorologist Ginger Zee. Ginger is the author of a book about her journey to understand and stabilize her mental health, entitled Natural Disaster: I Cover Them, I Am One. In this video, she speaks candidly about her experience with narcolepsy, anorexia, and depression. 

For as long as I can remember, I have always had obsessive thoughts. These thoughts would make me do certain rituals; if I didn’t do them, I believed something bad would happen. That is what obsessive behavior can do. As a child, and even now at 29 years old, I have had obsessive thoughts such as needing to make sure the faucets in bathrooms are turned off completely or that my clothes have no spots on them. If I don't pay attention to these thoughts, I fear that there is a chance of a flood in the house or that people will denigrate me when they notice a spot on my clothing. The thoughts come and go. While I sometimes got fixated on these thoughts, they didn’t seriously affect my mental health until my college years. That was when I began to recognize signs of a possible disorder.

During my senior year in college, I began having the obsessive existential thought: "I don't like to see". This thought bothered me a lot. The thought was so powerful that I started believing that I did not really like to see. This thought caused me great emotional distress; what’s more, I started having other intrusive and unwanted obsessive thoughts. I was now caught in a spiral of thinking unwanted thoughts; they lead to anxiety and depression.  My anxiety caused a racing heartbeat, feeling nervous, scared and panicky. Simultaneously, my depression caused decreased appetite and concentration, fatigue, lack of pleasure and excitement as well as feelings of sadness. I knew something was wrong and I could not shake it away on my own. This was when I decided I needed professional help.  

My first stop for help was seeing a psychiatrist who explained to me about Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) medications , commonly known as antidepressants. I was hesitant to take any because I have always had bad reactions to medications. However, because of my trust in the psychiatrist, I started taking Zoloft. Over a span of six weeks, gradually he increased the dosage to 150mg.  With the 150mg of Zoloft, all of a sudden, I had more energy, better concentration, appetite and a more regular sleep cycle.  The psychiatrist felt that my symptoms were part of  Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), a specific type of emotional and behavioral difference. He recommended that, in addition to taking the medication,  I see a therapist who would provide  cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

I accepted his recommendation and found a therapist who specialized in CBT and I started seeing her once a week.  She helped me implement a daily schedule to control the obsessive thoughts, plan for pleasurable activities, and use my rational scrutiny to test my irrational depressive thoughts. Therapy was not always easy. There were times I struggled and failed, and times when I did not want to continue the hard work to get better.  As time went on, however, I found that I had an inner strength that made me trust my professional support system and pushed me to keep going; I knew that, eventually, I would get out of my episode. So, with months of hard work, in combination with my medication, my obsessive thoughts decreased and my depression and anxiety subsided.

My treatment team was a big asset to my life and well being. The therapies and the emotional support of my professional treatment team and my friends and family helped me get trough my struggles.  I believe that, without them, I would not be at the point I am at today.  The experience of living through severe bouts of OCD has given me emotional strength. I have learned over time to always stay positive and know that bad times don't last forever. We all live in an imperfect world in which everyone has struggles of one kind or another. OCD, anxiety and depression are my struggles.

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Saving Sammy: A Mother's Fight to Cure Her Son's OCD by Beth Alison Maloney is the story of a mother’s attempt to battle her son's diagnosis and struggle with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). When Sammy was in sixth grade, he started exhibiting behaviors often associated with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, such as walking with his eyes shut and refusing to bathe.

Not willing to accept the idea that her son had suddenly developed OCD without warning, Mahoney began searching for answers from doctors. She soon learned that Sammy had a an autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder which was triggered by a streptococcal infection. Awareness of this condition, commonly referred to as PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcal Infections), has grown dramatically in recent years, and PANDAS is now recognized as a cause of sudden-onset Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in children.  The most recent research suggests that PANDAS is caused by antibodies which develop to fight strep, but which cause a reaction in the brain that results in OCD, tics, and other neuropsychiatric symptoms.  The symptoms of PANDAS usually come on quickly, are severe, and follow a diagnosis of strep throat.

Saving Sammy recounts Maloney’s journey to discover the source of her son’s sudden neuropsychiatric symptoms, which were ultimately completely cured. The books shines a crucial light on a little-known condition of which parents of young children should be aware.

Buy: Saving Sammy: A Mother's Fight to Cure Her Son's OCD