SPOKEN WORD POETRY @ PLATTSBURGH PUBLIC LIBRARY

Alesa Bernat, a Plattsburgh State University alumni, is a speech-language pathologist in a rural public school in Northern, New York.  Bernat was diagnosed with bipolar depression in 2015. Her debut poetry collection "Everything is Fine" centers on her experiences with mental health, motherhood, family, and friendship. The poems in the collection shed light on an often stigmatized disorder and depict how a person or family can ultimately overcome the darkness. Bernat's poetry has previously been featured in literary journals, magazines, and projects such as the Adirondack Center for Writing's PoemVillage, the Black River Review, Saranac Review, and Sad Girl Diaries.