Ruby Wax: The lighter side of 1 in 4

It does not matter who you are or what your profession is, 1 in 4 people suffer from a mental illness. It could be your sister, your mother, your favorite singer, athlete or movie star, or it could even be you. The speaker from TED that inspired me is Ruby Wax, she is a comedian that referrers to herself as the 1 in 4. Ruby had suffered in silence with depression, an illness that she inherited from her mother. Throughout much of her career she suffered in silence until the day she had a painful breakdown. After taking time off to manage this condition, referred to as “the Black Dog” she started a stand up show that addresses her mental illness story in a hilarious manner called “Losing It” with Judith Owen. Ruby brings comedy and awareness to mental illness, while Judith incorporates music through piano and song. Rudy also has started the “Black Dog Tribe” a social network which offers support and for people with depression.




"If we do not raise awareness to mental illness it will not be 1 in 4 it will be 4 in 4." Ruby

This topic touches home for me, I too am 1 in 4 and much like Ruby I also inherited it from my mother. Throughout my teens and into my early twenties I battled with depression. It took many years to get a handle on this disease and not let it define who I was or what I wanted to do. Being the oldest of seven we all grew up with a young mother struggling with mental illness. In Ruby’s show she explains that young children raised around mental illness often get the disease. Depression is many situations a learned disease, meaning when children are around parents that are depressed they then take on that roll. This also holds true for children raised in happy environments. It all has to do with what we learn through our developmental stages.

My family all thinks they are comedians, we often cracks jokes to shed light on some of the darker sides of growing up with a parent suffering from depression, my mom is a good sport.

People who have never had this illness do not always understand the severity of it, if it goes untreated. Growing up around it and then getting it myself, I wanted to not only help myself, but also help others suffering from depression. I have done a few speeches on depression while I was working on my Psychology degree. One of the things that truly helped me was listening to music. I am absolutely inspired by Ruby and her determination to raise awareness while incorporating music in her show.



“People who say they are perfectly fine are more insane then the rest of us.” Ruby