I thought the only way out of depression was to become a different person

“My life has been significantly better since I accepted that this is the brain, the personality, and the body that I have.”

— Sarah Dealy

Season 2 // Episode 1

Sarah Dealy was not outdoorsy. But at age 20, during a severe bout of depression, she enrolled in a wilderness therapy program. By the end of the program, she wanted to become an “outdoor girl.”

But becoming the outdoorswoman of her dreams didn’t come naturally. Sarah was an indoor kid at heart. She disliked many of the activities she imagined her outdoorsy self doing.

On this episode, Sarah takes us from the desert of Utah to the mountains of Colorado and explores what happens when the person you think you want to be doesn’t mesh with the person you are.

Read the episode transcript here.

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Episode Notes

Credits

This episode was written, produced and sound designed by Sarah Dealy.
Editing by Willow Belden.
Music includes selections from Blue Dot Sessions.

Additional Resources

You can see more of Sarah Dealy’s work here. Sign up here to be notified when her series about Troubled Teen wilderness programs comes out.
If you are a parent who is considering sending your kid to a wilderness program, Sarah recommends the book Help at Any Cost by Maia Szalavitz.
The apps Jessica Taylor recommended in this week’s Out There Favorites are Hip Camp, Campendium, and Harvest Hosts. In addition, here’s a little video Jessica made about Campendium, and here’s a Mother’s Day piece where they featured her.