Our Stories

Signed By Bellamy

Description: Bellamy shares this story because Bellamy wants people to know that mental health and getting treatment isn’t a one-size-fits-all experience. Sometimes it takes years, but it’s never too late to ask for help.


Signed By, Bellamy


ID: Bellamy is a White woman with brown hair pulled back. Bellamy is wearing a pink sweater. The background is white with a plant on the far left side. 

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Signed By Neila

Description: Neila shares her story in hopes of spreading awareness about deaf college students and their mental health struggles/discoveries. She hopes to bring awareness and relatability to academic environments and demonstrate the positive impact of education on students. We are not alone in our struggles.


Signed By, Neila


ID: Neila is a White woman with long brown hair and glasses. Neila is wearing a white button down shirt. The background is yellow with various paintings hung up. [A small, light blue box briefly appears on screen with Neila’s name written in dark blue text] 

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Signed By Keene

Description: Just because someone is from a Deaf family doesn’t mean that person automatically has the same experiences as all other Deaf people. In this video, Keene Shank shares the many different experiences within his immediate family, including his own. He emphasizes that having a Deaf identity can mean different things for everyone.


Signed By, Keene


ID: Keene is a 13-year-old boy. I’m a white male wearing a black shirt, and I have brown hair. I’m sitting by a white background with a fireplace in the back. 

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Signed By Rachel

I’m sharing my story because there are so many of us going through similar situations, but we don't realize it. We keep quiet because of social stigma, and because we aren't aware of --and there aren't enough-- resources in sign language. By sharing my story I hope to be able to help at least one person find the courage to speak (sign) up.

Signed By, Rachel


ID: Rachel is a White woman with long, red hair. She is wearing a black, long-sleeved shirt. She is also wearing bracelets and earrings, which are several different colors. She is standing in front of a black wall. 

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Signed By Chris

Chris shares this story of his arrest to demonstrate the traumatizing and dehumanizing effects of communication access barriers.

Signed By, Chris


ID: Opening title: [“Chris Warmack”] is written in dark blue text on a light blue background. Chris is a White man with brown hair, a mustache, and a trimmed, brown beard. He is wearing a dark purple, collared, short-sleeved shirt with a logo written in white words on his upper left chest. The background behind him is black. Crisis numbers are displayed in white text against a black background after Chris finishes sharing. The Signed By Stories logo is pictured at the end. A blue-outlined thought bubble has “Signed By Stories” written in dark blue text against a yellow background. Beneath the word “Stories” is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Signed By Martise

Martise shares this story to raise awareness about mental health access issues.

Signed By, Martise



ID: Martise is a Black man with short-trimmed, black facial hair. He is wearing a short-sleeved gray shirt with a silver chain necklace. The wall behind him is white. There are crisis lines displayed at the end of the video in white font against a black background. The Signed By Stories logo is pictured as the end card. A blue-outlined thought bubble has "Signed By Stories" written in dark blue text against a yellow background. Beneath the word "Stories" is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Signed By Lisa

Lisa shares this story because there's a need for more online deaf therapists and for financial resources to access them.

Signed By, Lisa

ID: Lisa is a White woman with shoulder-length gray hair and bangs. She is wearing a long-sleeved pink sweater. She is sitting on a green couch and the walls behind her are white. Helpline numbers, crisis lines, and the Signed By Stories logo are pictured at the end. The crisis lines are written in white text against a blue background. The logo shows a blue-outlined thought bubble with "Signed By Stories" written in dark blue text against a yellow background. Beneath the word "Stories" is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Signed By Amanda

Amanda shares this story to let others know they're not alone, and to bring awareness to the hearing world about inequitable access to mental health services for the Deaf community.

Signed By, Amanda

ID: Opening title: [“Amanda Tuite”] is written in dark blue text on a light blue background. Amanda is a White woman with shoulder length, wavy, brown hair. She is wearing a long-sleeved, dark blue sweater and a white-beaded pearl necklace. There is a blue curtain in the background behind her. After Amanda shares her story, crisis and helpline numbers are displayed in white text against a black background. The Signed By Stories logo is pictured at the end. A blue-outlined thought bubble has “Signed By Stories” written in dark blue text against a yellow background. Beneath the word “Stories” is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Signed By Alex

Alex shares this story to help others know they’re not alone in the challenges they face.

Signed By, Alex

ID: Alex is a White male with short black hair and short-trimmed black facial hair. He is wearing a short-sleeved gray, collared shirt and has tattoos on both arms. The wall behind him is white. The Signed By Stories logo is pictured at the end. A blue-outlined thought bubble has "Signed By Stories" written in dark blue text against a yellow background. Beneath the word "Stories" is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Signed By Ashlea

Ashlea shares this story because PMDD affects 1 in 20 women. That’s a lot of women who probably don’t even know they have it.

Signed By, Ashlea

ID: Opening title: [“Ashlea Hayes”] is written in dark blue text on a light blue background. Ashlea is a Black woman and is wearing a long-sleeved gray shirt with black dots on it. Her hair is covered by a black wrap on her head. She is wearing silver hoop earrings and the background behind her is black. The Signed By Stories logo is pictured at the end. A blue-outlined thought bubble has “Signed By Stories” written in dark blue text against a yellow background. Beneath the word “Stories” is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Signed By Melissa

Melissa shares this story to emphasize the importance of having mental health resources, which are so limited for the Deaf community. 

Signed By, Melissa

ID: ID - The opening title is written in dark blue text on a light blue background. Melissa is pictured wearing a long-sleeved, gray shirt. Her black hair is reddish-brown at the ends and the wall in the background behind her is white. The Signed By Stories logo is pictured at the end. A blue-outlined thought bubble has "Signed By" written in dark blue cursive at the top and "Stories" written in plain, dark blue font below it against a yellow background. Beneath the word "Stories" is a light blue palm facing upwards. There are short lines in red, orange, and yellow surrounding the bubble.

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Want to Share?

We welcome you to share your own story with the community! Please reach out to submissions@signedbystories.com if you are interested.

Note: All interested participants are required to sign and return a waiver before personal story content will be shared on any of our platforms. 

Share Your Story

ID: [On-Screen: “Want to Share Your Story?” is written in dark blue text within a light blue text box].  Emma is a White woman with long, curly blonde hair. She is wearing a zip-up sweater that has a black, white, and gray-striped pattern. The walls behind her are white and there is a standing lamp in the background to the left of her. At the end of the video, Emma points to the email address displayed on-screen. [On-Screen: “submissions@signedbystories.com” is written in dark blue text within a light blue text box]. 

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*Signed By Stories reserves the right to decide whether or not to publish contributed material at its own discretion.