Larissa May Helps Gen Z Unplug From Fear and Plug into Life

What is one defining moment in your career or life that empowered you to create change, and how has it shaped the path you’re on today?

Ten years ago in my dorm room at Vanderbilt University, I found myself in the grips of an addiction that brought me to the darkest period of my life. With no answers and in an act of desperation, I forced myself to go to the College Psych Center on campus in search of answers. Upon arrival, the doctor asked me about alcohol, sex, and drug use, but never once did he ask me about the drug in my pocket, my phone. That night I experienced a lightbulb moment. It occurred to me that I was merely one of millions of people who must be suffering from the crippling reality of what tech was doing to me. In the best way I knew, I decided that I needed to turn my pain into purpose. During my senior year, I began working on an art project which quickly grew into a movement of young people on campuses across the US who raised their collective voice in solidarity with sharing authentic experiences online. This was a first-of-its-kind movement that garnered over 30,000 personal accounts and stories.

I began by sharing my story about how social media impacted me. This experience led to talking circles of young people on campuses worldwide (Gloria Steinem style) sharing their experiences and unpacking the reality social media had on young people. This journey made me realize that the future of digital wellness would not be solved in darkness or fear but in hope.

What is the legacy you hope to leave behind as a changemaker and leader in your industry?

I hope to be the guiding light in the digital wellness revolution. I aspire to pave the way for the younger generation to shift the narrative from fear and digital sickness into digital wellness and to make it a fundamental human right. In other words, slay digital dragons.

In honor of Gloria Steinem’s 90 years of advocacy, what do you believe is her most enduring contribution to women’s empowerment, and how has it inspired your own journey?

I hope to be the guiding light in the digital wellness revolution. I aspire to pave the way for the younger generation to shift the narrative from fear and digital sickness into digital wellness and to make it a fundamental human right. In other words, slay digital dragons.

What does progress for women look like in your field, and what steps do you believe are necessary to keep that momentum going?

Before founding #HalfTheStory, my college art project, was centered on Gloria Steinem and the concept of “lipstick liberation.”

Years later I received an invitation to Gloria’s home for a talking circle on digital wellness. It was the most important day of my life. I will never forget walking in and seeing her writing nook, using her bathroom, and realizing that amidst women’s rights being stripped, I had to protect Gloria’s advocacy and represent her light in all that I did.

After leaving her Upper East Side living room, a place where history had unfolded, I resolved to carry her light for as long as I could in my work. This commitment to hope and positivity has been a guiding force in my journey with #HalfTheStory. While the world would profit off of darkness, I decided I would be a light beam. I knew it was the only way through to the next generation.