“On the surface, my life during that time was relatively normal, consisting of grad school, waitressing jobs, and a lot of moving around—much like many other people’s twenties. But most people don’t threaten to kill themselves more days than not, and most people don’t require their friends to be on constant suicide watch. Most people do not have the psych emergency room on speed-dial.”

— Stacy Pershall, from “Loud in the House of Myself.”