Now I See: How I Battled Blindness, Mental Illness, an Espresso Habit and Lived to Tell the Tale

A native Sicilian-Italian speaker, Mariagrazia Buttitta is currently pursuing a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling from The College of New Jersey. Mariagrazia speaks to college students and organizations about her blindness, along with her long-term battle with depression and anxiety. In 2015, Mariagrazia founded an Instagram social media campaign, the (#YSS) Your Sunglass Selfie Project, using the hashtag #eye4acure in an effort to tear down stigma and negative assumptions held about the many different types of blindness that exist, including her own cone dystrophy. When not working, Mariagrazia loves spending quality time with family and friends, hiking, collecting sunglasses, exercising, shopping, and hanging out with her two therapy dogs, Happy and Lucky. Her one true weakness-espresso . . . and lots of it. www.embracingyourdifferences.com