An Evening with Melissa Bernstein, Author of LifeLines

On Wednesday, April 7 at 6:30 p.m., the Ferguson Library will host An Evening with Melissa Bernstein, the co-founder of the toy company Melissa & Doug and the author of LifeLines: An Inspirational Journey from Profound Darkness to Radiant Light. The virtual program will take place on Zoom. Registration is required and Zoom login information will be included in the registration confirmation. Register online.

Melissa Bernstein, along with her husband Doug, is the co-founder of the toy company Melissa & Doug, which has created over 5,000 children's products and sold billions of dollars of toys since its inception.

Throughout her remarkable career, Melissa kept secret her lifelong battle with severe depression and anxiety. She reveals her struggles in LifeLines, her first book, which she wrote to help others who are also suffering. LifeLines is an unfiltered and authentic reckoning with how Melissa's anxiety and depression-which started in childhood and continue to this day-have manifested and how she coped. Born of a desire to forge community, LifeLines features Melissa's story, as well as three of the "lifelines" that saved her, including the "lifeline" of the rhyming verses that have been filling her head for decades - verses that express her struggles and breakthroughs. She shares the story of her journey inward toward self-discovery, detailing the ways she adapted her
thinking and practices to feel at home in her body and in the world.

The book offers solace, connection, and support to others struggling with feelings of depression, anxiety, isolation, or loneliness, with one fundamental message: you are not alone. Melissa's book heralds the launch of LifeLines.com, an online ecosystem she and Doug are underwriting to support those seeking support, guidance, and community on their mental health journeys.

For more information, call 203 351-8221.