I grew up thinking my mental health was something I was supposed to hide. As a kid I didn’t even have the language for what I was feeling; [anxiety, confusion, shame??] none of that had names back then. I just knew something felt “off” and I thought it made me weak. I thought it made me wrong. I definitely never imagined that one day I’d be invited to stand on a stage and talk about it. But here I am. At the TAAF Asian Youth Mental Health Summit. Sharing the exact mess I used to run from. Little me would’ve never believed this was possible. He would’ve never thought that people would care, or listen, or see value in the parts of me I kept buried. And yet those are the parts that ended up bringing me here. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the emotions we’re taught to hide are usually the ones that connect us the most. The “mess” isn’t something to be ashamed of. The mess is human. The mess is powerful. And the moment you stop running from it, it stops running your life. So i...