By Kevin Kutner
Jenna Kahn, a Towson University student suffering from bipolar disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), said at the annual TEDxTowsonU Conference last Thursday that one in four people will experience mental illness in their lifetime.
“That’s 25 percent of you, and I want to know why we don’t talk about this more,” Kahn said in a speech to nearly 100 attendees at Towson.
Kahn is 19 years old and has been taking medication for her bipolar disorder and OCD since high school.
“[My roommate and I] call my room ‘the pharmacy’ – I have a drawer full of pills. I attend therapy every week and see a psychiatrist every four to six weeks and it’s constant maintenance,” Kahn said in an interview after her speech.
Kahn said she found out about the conference in February.
“I was walking into the [Towson] Administration Building on campus when a poster caught my eye. It was a poster for TEDxTowsonU advertising for student presenters to speak at the annual TEDx Conference. I thought, ‘This is it,’” Kahn said.
TEDxTowsonU is a conference that is based on the popular TED talk format. Multiple speakers present on a topic based on the theme of the day. The ‘X’ in TEDx stands for an “Independently Organized Event.” according to the TEDxTowsonU website.
Samantha Figueroa, a sophomore at Towson who was part of the TEDx planning committee, said she selected Kahn to be a student speaker because she thought Kahan’s story would be interesting to fellow students.
“Speakers should be fluid, and know about the topic they’re discussing,” Figueroa said. “Speakers needed to submit a three- to five-minute video to us, and we made our decisions from there.”
“The point of TED is really to discuss your story and what specifically you’re doing in your life that’s changing the world,” Figueroa said. “[Kahn] was the speaker that stood out to us. Her speech was unique, personal, and made sense with our theme, ‘Ignite the Movement.’”
Kahn writes a blog called The Awkward Indie Girl. While it was once a fashion blog, it became a mental health blog after she was diagnoised. She said she receives thousands of hits each day as Kahn details the impact her mental disorders have on her life.
“I’m going to bring up the topic,” Kahn said in her speech. “One way to eradicate the stigma surrounding mental illness is to bring it up.”
Kahn was undiagnosed for the first eight years of her disorder. She dealt with what she called her “mad scientist” mode – something doctors later diagnosed as a manic episode. Other times, Kahn said she felt so depressed she was unable to get out of bed for days on end. Eventually, she turned to self-harm.
“It got to the point where I planned on taking my own life,” she said. “I had it all figured out, but as the days grew closer, I decided I wanted to live. I spoke with the school psychologist and my parents, and I was hospitalized for seven days.”
“When I got back, I had two choices: lie and say I went to Florida, or tell the truth,” said Kahn. “I didn’t have a killer tan, so I went with honesty. People really responded positively when I told them. It turns out people are willing to talk if you make the first step. People will meet you halfway.”
Nick Grabner, a junior at Towson who was a guest at TEDx, said he needed to apply to be granted admission to the conference, though the conference was live streamed for those unable to attend.
“I thought the conference was great. It made applying really worthwhile,” Grabner said. “I thought what [Kahn] had to say about mental illness made sense. It’s not a topic we need to shy away from. We can be curious about it, not afraid.”
“When you decide to tell your story, you give a face to mental illness,” Kahn said. “My goal is when you think of bipolar or OCD you can think of me and not some diagnosis or words you can’t connect to.”
Kahn closed her speech with a call to action: revolutionize the conversation.
“Tell your story. Listen to other stories,” she said. “Let’s create a safe supportive environment for mental health.”