COLUMBUS, Ohio — It’s a special homecoming for Dr. Brad Ryan, and a fan club meeting for his Grandma Joy.
- A veterinarian, who got his start at OSU, teamed up with his grandma for the most epic intergenerational road trip ever, beginning in 2015
- He set out on the trip to escape from his mental health struggles
- He says he hopes speaking with the students who are following in his career path will inspire them to keep going and find a balance
The two Ohioans set out on an amazing tour of America’s national parks.
But as much as it was about sightseeing, it was about getting both Brad Ryan and his octogenarian grandma in better health and spirits, and reconnecting after years of being estranged.
“I was still processing a lot of my own mental health struggles,” said Ryan, DVM, Columbus. I reached out to my Grandma Joy because I needed to get away and escape to the great outdoors, which had always been my source of healing.”
Ryan says that vet school was a trying time for him.
“I, myself, battled suicidal ideation and chronic depression throughout the majority of my vet school career, but during my senior year, I was voted student with the best sense of humor,” said Ryan.
And that’s why he came back to the Ohio State University Veterinary School to speak about his struggles with mental health.
“It's a lot, it's overwhelming and it can be exhausting. And there are so many aspects can be stressful,” said Laura Venner, veterinary graduate student, Ohio State University.
Vet student Laura Venner says they talk about mental health a lot in the program, and she was relieved to hear Ryan shared many of the anxieties she and her classmates had experienced.
“That's really comforting to know that there is not only one person that is feeling overwhelmed. And that there are successful veterinarians that are not only finding success with their job, but also with their families,” said Venner.
The Centers for Disease Control issued 2018 data that said veterinarians had an increased risk of suicide.
Venner, an 3rd-year student, worries about the future.
“It makes me sad to know that people have stood in my shoes and have wanted to be in vet school and they are finally living their dreams and they feel overwhelmed,” said Venner.
Combatting those feelings is exactly why Ryan teamed up with Grandma Joy for the most epic intergenerational road trip ever, beginning in 2015.
“So, we met him here up at the college and away we went,” said Grandma Joy.
They set out to one park...
“Great Smoky Mountains...and I stayed in a tent for the first time, and climbed a mountain for the first time,” said Grandma Joy.
Grandma Joy caught the travel bug, and now she and her grandson have hit every national park in the lower 48.
“I watch all the travel shows on PBS, I watch them all. And to think, I never dreamed in my whole life that I'd get to see what I've seen on air,” said Grandma Joy.
Ryan says he hopes speaking with the students who are following in his career path will inspire them to keep going, and find a balance.
“I want them to hopefully feel compelled to reach out to their classmates, and more importantly, to the mental health professionals that have been made available here, if they can see a little piece of themselves in what I'm saying tonight,” said Ryan.
Grandma Joy wants to inspire her fellow-seniors to see the world…
“You just, when you sit at home, you don't realize all of the beautiful, wonderful things that's out in this world, that man didn't make, didn't have one hand in it. The Lord made it,” said Grandma Joy.
And encourage more kids and grandkids to connect with their elders.