On November 9, 2015, UConn was lucky enough to have Sara Benincasa come to speak to the students in the Student Union Theater. Sara Benincasa is a comedian, author and radio/television personality. At first glance, you would think she is your average, everyday funny woman who was lucky enough to make it in the male-dominated world of media. However, if you look a little deeper, she is so much more.
Sara Benincasa, from the young age of ten, knew she was experiencing feelings that many of her peers were not. She would have bouts of high anxiety where it felt as though she could not breathe, move, or function. These feelings started out small, but got progressively worse as she aged. When she was 16, her doctors diagnosed her with agoraphobia (the fear of leaving the house). At this time, she was trying to be a normal teenager – she wanted to fit in and have friends just like everyone else. The medications were not enough, but she was too embarrassed and obsessed with being “normal” that she could not admit, even to herself, that she needed help. In her words, she had to “keep it together” because she was the vice president of her junior class.
She dealt with these feelings until her junior year in college, when she went into a severe depression because she could not deal with the constant anxiety. She considered suicide and isolated herself in her house. Luckily, one day, her best friend (who never gave up on her, or thought she was being “rude”) intervened and most likely saved her life. Her friend, Alex, called Sara’s parents and they got her the help (a combination of therapy and medication) she needed. Eventually Sara went back to school, got a degree in teaching, but decided to pursue a career in stand up comedy.
She has written three books and a fourth is to be published in April of 2016. These stories outline some of the struggles that she encountered, most famously Agorafabulous! Dispatches From My Bedroom. She also writes novels that are very popular with young adults.
Most importantly from her talk, students could see from a new perspective what the affects of depression and anxiety can have on a person. She offered more than amazing advice on how to handle those who are dealing with these problems from a bystander point of view, such as never telling someone that they “shouldn’t be sad.” She told students that sometimes, people just need someone to be there to listen. For those in the crowd that may be suffering in silence themselves, she highly recommended that they seek help and search for a cure to these problems. Maybe the most important thing that she reiterated over and over “you are NOT your diagnosis.”
Sara Benincasa is a great example of how mental health issues are a real struggle for so many people, but with the right help, you can overcome as well. She tells her story to help others understand that they are not alone and are not “abnormal” for having “feelings” or emotions that others are not.
Students here on campus can seek help from the Counseling and Mental Health Services or call the 24/7 hot-line.