Ash Said It® Daily

As we enter Mental Health Awareness month, one author and artist is sharing her coming-of-age story through the lenses of mental illness, disability and steadfast determination. Long Island native Ruth Poniarski’s first book, Journey of the Self: Memoir of an Artist, published by Charlotte, North Carolina-based Warren Publishing, is a stunning and unflinchingly-honest memoir that challenges the stigmas placed on mental illness. The book has received glowing reviews, including a Kirkus Star review.It started as a college prank; a friend offered Ruth Poniarski a brownie that, unbeknownst to her, was laced with angel dust. What resulted was a debilitating accident, and the first of many mental breakdowns that spiraled into diagnoses of psychosis, schizophrenia, severe anxiety and bipolar disorder. For years, Poniarski struggled to cope with her new reality as she undertook a rigorous architectural program, sought out new friends (and the perfect mate) and battled through the depths of mental illness. Her journey