Born during the Islamic Revolution and raised by Persian parents amid an affectionate and gossipy Iranian diaspora in the American heartland of Dayton, Ohio, Melody Moezzi enjoyed all the amenities of a typical American youth – Froot Loops, Saturday-morning cartoons, and Catholic school - but also experienced a distinctly Iranian upbringing: Farsi class, unibrows, saffron on everything, and Ph.D.s or M.D.s for the whole family.
When Moezzi battled severe physical illness at age eighteen, her community stepped up, filling her hospital rooms with roses, lilies, and hyacinths. But when she attempted suicide and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, there were no flowers. Locked in psych wards and bombarded with antipsychotics, she was encouraged to keep her illness a secret – by both her family and an increasingly callous medical establishment. Refusing to be ashamed, Moezzi instead became an outspoken advocate, determined to fight the stigma surrounding mental illness.
