"Meaningful connections are crucial to our wellbeing, but what is life like without friends? As someone with obsessive-compulsive disorder, I will discuss the struggles of forming and maintaining friendships, and how I'm working to be brave." Strength can be found even in times of weakness and Ryman hopes to inspire the Georgetown community to find the bravery to reach out for help. Her non-traditional journey to the Hilltop brought an underlying struggle with mental illness to the surface as she works to actively destigmatize mental illness and speak about the value of human connection. Strength can be found even in times of weakness and Ryman hopes to inspire the Georgetown community to find the bravery to reach out for help. Her non-traditional journey to the Hilltop brought an underlying struggle with mental illness to the surface as she works to actively destigmatize mental illness and speak about the value of human connection. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx