Sudbury natives share mental health stories through baking
Dana Altman now has a ‘Bake it Till You Make it’ cookbook complete with mental health resources
Use her baking skills to do just that. ERIKA: Her DANA ALTMAN, a 30-year-old author and baker, tells her mental health story. DANA: I’ve been an advocate since the beginning of my mental health journey. DANA: AND — ERIKA: ENTREPRENEUR FOUNDER BAKE IT TO YOU MAKE IT — UNTIL YOU BAKE IT. DANA: Use food and sweets to talk about mental health in a non-threatening, easy-to-speak, and palatable way. Erica: She uses baking AR to share her stories, helping seniors centers and I am moving to school and sharing with other people who have similar challenges. DANA: By sharing my story, I’ve found that many others feel comfortable sharing theirs. Everyone has a story, and our stories often lead to recipes and foods we love. ERIKA: When people we meet share their stories, Altman They said they shared recipes that were special to them. An anthology cookbook with individual stories. DANA: I wanted someone who could pick it up and feel seen and represented. Include health resources. Asking for help is very difficult. We think of it as a sign of weakness but in reality it’s a sign of strength and bravery and if I could be that voice it means everything to me and bake till you make it I was able to do it by To not only be the entrepreneur I want to be, but to be the person I want to be.ERIKA: Her go-to recipe is graham crackers her brownies. The recipe is not only simple, but also used as a metaphor. Example — DANA: Things fell apart when I entered college. I didn’t have a support system, my family, I was alone. Things really fell apart. That’s when you’re at Graham Crackers. This represents my life at that time. ERIKA: She shares that she was previously hospitalized at Belmont and treated for depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and an eating disorder. DANA: I’m glad I went. What a change for me. With the addition of sweetened condensed milk, you get a few tools and you can sweeten too, but it’s all for yourself. Erica: But she needs two cans for her recipe. She was back in the hospital because she didn’t have the materials she needed to recover. DANA: For me, this was a big turning point. I was ready for recovery and ready to learn. I got new skills, new medications, a new therapist I’ve seen for the last 11 years. I am very grateful for that. She got her second can of sweetened condensed milk. ERIKA: After I finished my therapy program, I went to Northeastern University and started studying social work. DANA: I wanted to go back to McLean and help people — the way I was helped. ERIKA: But there was another setback while studying abroad. Dana: I was sexually assaulted by someone I was traveling with. If this recipe had another step to throw everything on the floor, that’s how it felt. ERIKA: Using the tools she learned in therapy, she graduated in 2015. It’s the moment she finds something bittersweet. Or rather? DANA: Semi-sweet, as many people can imagine. Add semi-sweet chocolate chips to the bowl. ERIKA: Her first job was a dream job as a counselor at MCLEAN HOSPITAL. Through her work, she discovered a new passion and helped others by sharing her mental health journey.DANA: Bring me on today and start baking until you make it. Erica: She doesn’t feel her story is over Her Dana: SHE DANA: Continues to bake, educate and advocate for herself and others. Bake it and it’s still messy. But it’s a good symbol. They can be messy and still delicious.ERIKA: – SHAYNA: And last year she was selected as the first-ever participant in the Mental Health Her Youth Her Action Forum.Anthony: Held at the White House, she said she was nervous meeting Selena Gum
Sudbury natives share mental health stories through baking
Dana Altman now has a ‘Bake it Till You Make it’ cookbook complete with mental health resources
Updated: February 10, 2023 8:20 PM EST
Dayna Altman, 30, is outspoken about her mental health story. The Sudbury native is also an entrepreneur, and in 2017 she founded Bake it Till You Make it. Altman visits senior centers and schools to share mental health stories through her bread making. When people shared their stories with Altman, they often shared recipes that resonated with them. Altman began collecting these recipes, and in 2019 she published “Bake it Till You Make it: Breaking Bread, Building Resilience.”
Dayna Altman, 30, is outspoken about her mental health story. The Sudbury native is also an entrepreneur, bake until done 2017. Altman visits senior centers and schools to share mental health stories through baking. When people shared their stories with Altman, they often shared recipes that resonated with them. Altman began collecting these recipes and published them in 2019. “Bake til you make it: Break the bread and build resilienceis an anthology cookbook containing 40 individual recipes and 40 individual stories.
