Growing up, I always felt a bit different, perhaps broken.

How I connected with the world around me was often more intense or sometimes confusing. I knew so much, and threw myself with passion at the things I liked.

Yet, I’d fail at the simplest of tasks or freeze when asked to push myself.

It’s only at 18 years old that I got my answer: I have ADHD and generalized anxiety disorder. I was relived to know that I wasn’t broken. However, the emotional stress from years of feeling this way plunged me in a depression unfortunately leading to suicidal thoughts.

After months with the dark cloud above my head, I felt that perhaps it was time to go. I walked to the casino, gambling my money away, unsure about my future.

As I was leaving, I looked back. The lights of the casino were pretty.

I took my phone out and took a picture, then another, and another, capturing all the beauty I was now able to see. Making photographs became a way to escape my head and heal my mind.

Through photography, I found solace and a renewed sense of purpose, which gave me the strength to begin the process of healing from my depression.

I know the power of photographs, and now, i want to bring it to you.