Bud Clayman was the creative driving force behind Recovery Diaries. The website is an outgrowth of the autobiographical documentary film, OC87: The Obsessive Compulsive, Major Depression, Bipolar, Asperger’s Movie. Bud created, co-directed (along with Glenn Holsten and Scott Johnston) and was the principal subject of OC87, which had its theatrical premiere in 2012. The film chronicles Bud’s ongoing battle with mental illness and can be seen on Amazon and Sproutflix. Recovery Diaries expands on that story by allowing others to share their own stories of empowerment. His vision is simple yet challenging: to have a world free of mental illness stigma. Read all of Bud Clayman's posts here and listen to his podcast, OC87 Recovery Diaries on the Radio.

Gabe is an author, editor, actor, playwright, director, and a mental health and suicide awareness advocate. For five years, he worked at Montgomery County Emergency Service, Inc. (MCES), a non-profit crisis psychiatric hospital in the capacity of Allied Therapist and, later, as Development Specialist. At MCES, he created innovative programs such as a psychiatric visiting nurse program, a suicide prevention collaboration with SEPTA, and an Inpatient Concert Series that brought professional performing artists to entertain the patients and enrich their inpatient experience. While at MCES, Gabe also produced and directed a full-scale production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town with the staff of the hospital, as an exercise in teamwork, empathy-building, and creative expression. Gabe writes extensively on mental health and suicide awareness matters on Medium and other platforms and, for five years, he spread his own brand of suicide awareness with his 1963 Volkswagen Beetle, Herbie the Love Bug replica, its rear window emblazoned with the Suicide/Crisis Lifeline number, 988. Gabe lives in a suburb of Philadelphia with his family.

Read Gabe’s essay on Men’s Mental Health. Learn more about Gabe’s experience producing Our Town at a psychiatric hospital: part one and part two. Check out all of his posts on Recovery Diaries.

Glenn is an award-winning director who loves to create compelling documentary story experiences of all lengths for screens of all sizes. He is an avid reader, studied literature in college, and his passion for stories with strong characters and interesting narratives stems from those years. His career as a visual storyteller began at WHYY (the public television station in Philadelphia) where he worked for 15 years before becoming an independent filmmaker. In addition to his PBS documentaries about arts and culture, he has directed films about justice and human rights, and now, mental health. He was emboldened to undertake his current documentary project, Hollywood Beauty Salon, a colorful feature-length documentary about surviving mental illness and finding the courage for recovery, after his transformative experience directing OC87: The Obsessive Compulsive, Major Depression, Bipolar, Asperger’s Movie, along with Bud Clayman and Scott Johnston.

See all posts by Glenn Holsten >>

Leah is an artist who has fully embraced the Internet. She is a designer of web sites for art centered experiences, diverse teachers, and has shared her story on Recovery Diaries. Leah has worked on documentary films that have screened on Ovation TV, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, and on Netflix. You can see her work and sign up for her mailing list at withleahmoon.com. Leah is a graduate of Smith College with a dual degree in the Study of Women and Gender and Studio Art with a concentration in Electronic Media. Leah is also trained as a Reiki Master.

See all posts by Leah Alexandra Goldstein >>

In addition to her current role at Recovery Diaries, Lena works an office job, reads manuscripts for a literary agent, and serves on the editorial staff for the literary magazine, Philadelphia Stories, and the academic journal, Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe. Lena holds a bachelor's in English from Temple University, as well as master's degrees in both creative writing and publishing from Rosemont College. She hails from the City of Philadelphia and enjoys reading, writing, and playing computer games.

Laura Farrell is a New School graduate who studied creative writing. She grew up outside of Philadelphia and first became interested in the recovery process while working with PTSD patients. Her passion grew as she struggled with her own mental health challenges and was so happy to become a part of Recovery Diaries. Laura loves making all types of creative work: writing, visual, singing, dancing among other things.

See all posts by Laura Farrell >>

Kavita Sarmah is a writer and editor, mental health advocate and queer person. She has been published in Cosmopolitan, Homegrown, Arré, ScoopWhoop, and other publications. Her creative endeavours are rooted in open-mindedness, curiosity, and her Assamese upbringing. Read all posts by Kavita Sarmah »

Taylor Mellon is a detail-oriented coordinator with a background in healthcare operations. Taylor supports a mission-driven team with dedication and compassion. Outside of work, Taylor runs a popular food Instagram page based in Philadelphia. What began as a hobby has evolved into a growing platform that connects food enthusiasts across the city. Taylor enjoys yoga, hanging out with her cat Albert, and being in the garden.