David Romano lives with depression; in his presentation\, “It Wasn’t Supposed to Happen to Me”\, he reveals his experiences with the dark lows of self-injury and a suicide attempt during high school\, and his ongoing path to recovery.<\p>\n
When he began to feel the early symptoms of depression in middle school\, he thought everyone felt that way\, and that it was part of growing up; but when he reached tenth grade and depression turned into a sense of darkness enveloping him\, David assumed that he was failing everyone\, including himself\, and that he wasn’t the man he was supposed to be.<\p>\n
The popular student and multi-sport athlete tried to maintain his outward image as the fun\, goofy kid\, and used sports and other activities to cover his inner struggle. A mental health check-list he read in health class shone a light on his symptoms\, and he began a treatment plan under the care of a professional; after some ups and downs\, he found the right combination of medication and therapy\, and has focused his energies on self-healing and spreading awareness about mental health and suicide prevention\, as a speaker and through his Bike Across America for Mental Health campaign.<\p> LOCATION:Forum\, Shults Center END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR