Today we’d like to introduce you to Dayna Altman

Hi Dayna, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?

My name is Dayna Altman and I am an author, speaker and entrepreneur. I started Bake it Till You Make it LLC, a community based organization that uses food and baking to cultivate authentic mental health conversation in the kitchen , around the table and beyond, in 2019 when I published the first of its kind mental health cookbook: “Bake it Till You Make it: Breaking Bread, Building Resilience” . Since then, the organization has grown to become a true community rooted in vulnerable storytelling whether that is through presentations, workshops or through one of the various media projects, Bake it Till You Make it is dedicated to helping all individuals access resources, support and truly know they are not alone.

Before I was a mental health entrepreneur, I was always building and creating something. I like to think I have always been a passionate leader and creative. Any time I became a passionate about a cause, I created a business out of it. For example, in elementary school, my babysitter was watching an episode of Dr. Phil with a story about muscular dystrophy. I felt compelled to thus raise money and awareness for muscular dystrophy by creating necklaces out of fusion beads and selling them to my neighbors. The day before I had never heard of this cause and the day after, I was onto something new. I learned in college that is known as serial entrepreneurship; I always trying to build and create.

Since the start of Bake it Till You Make it, I feel less like a serial entrepreneur. I am constantly coming up with new ways to spread my mission and build out my programming but I feel so settled in Bake it Till You Make it. I believe in it in a way that I am so proud of. The combination of mental health storytelling and baking is unique and not everyone gets it, but I am coming to realize as long as I “get it” and believe in it, the right people will also find it.

I was inspired to create Bake it Till You Make it LLC as a result of my own struggles with mental health. I have been struggling with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), depression and eating disorder for most of my life but I was not formally diagnosed with any mental health struggles until I went to college.

When I started college, I felt like my life “fell apart”, the very anxious web of control I spun around my life before college was completely unwoven when I got to college. Not having my support system or certainty, I landed in the counseling center a day into classes.

Several years of intense treatment, hospitalizations, medications and more, led me to a place where I could not only talk about my own experience but also be inspired and inspire others with my story. My mental health journey is not over though, nor will it ever be and I am okay with that. I am stuck with my mental health challenges for the rest of my life but I don’t see that as a deficit or weakness, I am proud to know myself and live my mission. While I wouldn’t wish my struggles on anyone (including myself), since I do face them and they are a real part of me, embracing them has been liberating.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

The road has absolutely not been smooth, but I don’t think I am alone in that experience. Neither road of entrepreneurship nor mental health has been without challenges, but in both cases I feel the obstacles really shaped me.

In terms of entrepreneurship, there have been A LOT of winding roads to a path of “success” and in a lot of ways I have had to redefine what success means for me to get to a place where I feel successful. I always likened success to money and Bake it Till You Make it is certainly not making me a million dollars BUT it has impacted people, it has brought people together, I have created community, I have inspired care and conversation and that is success.

When it comes to my mental health, the obstacles, unfortunately, feel endless. It is really hard to live with mental illness. Life is full of challenges for everyone and adding in mental health factors can make things even more challenging. Additionally, my mental health as at some points stopped my life in its tracks. Not being able to keep myself safe or get out of bed, has led to life altering treatments and change of directions. I am so grateful for the care that I have been given AND that has certainly made my path more challenging. It has also undoubtedly shaped my future.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?

Bake it Till You Make it LLC is an organization based in storytelling and I also feel like I am a human based in storytelling too. I have always loved the personal narrative and believe everyone has a story to share–and that is truly at the heart of the work that I do as a creative entrepreneurial artist.

Through Bake it Till You Make its books, workshops and media projects, highlighting the healing power of mental health storytelling has brought me to so much: connections, joy and hope!

Right now I am working on my fifth book of the Bake it Till You Make it series called “For All My Tiers: Baking Cakes and Embracing my Big Emotions”. This book is an anthology of short stories and recipes all based in my own healing and experience. I am also working on sharing the Bake it Till You Make it documentary with the world! Released on World Mental Health Day: October 10th 2023, the Bake it Till You Make it documentary is now an intentionally acclaimed documentary viewed across the globe. This full length documentary tells my recovery story and the way creativity has helped me in my own journey. You can watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bbn_zP2qaSI&t=1s

What matters most to you?

I think what matters most to me is that I give to people what I did not have. I always wanted someone to “see me” and “believe me” in my most difficult moments, especially as a kid and teenager. It is so important to me to do the mental health advocacy that I do so no one has to feel as alone as I did or continue to feel sometimes. Even now, with an amazing support team and “village” around me, I can still feel lonely or like that scared little girl I often think about, however, I do know now that I don’t have to feel alone, I am being the person that I needed when I was younger and that means more than any accolade to me!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bakeittillyoumakeit.co
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daynaaltman
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bakeittillyoumakeitllc/
• Other: https://patreon.com/BakeItTillYouMakeIt

Image Credits
Brenna Stewart Photography

Jason Taglieri, New Vintage Co.