Ms. Tanya Brown

Tanya Brown is youngest sister of the late Nicole Brown Simpson who was killed in 1994. Immediately following Nicole’s death, her family founded The Nicole Brown Foundation whose mission is to educate communities on strategies for domestic violence prevention. Through her involvement in the Foundation, Tanya has been speaking and advocating to community groups, service organizations, schools, colleges, universities, law enforcement agencies, non profits and shelters providing assistance to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.

But it has taken five years for Tanya to build up her courage to speak about her own personal struggle with mental illness. After enduring the loss of her beloved sister, and several close friends, she struggled with an eating disorder, depression, anxiety, and unresolved grief. After the murder, Tanya never took the time to process Nicole’s death and grieve properly.

In September of 2004 her fiancé cancelled their wedding just four days before the ceremony. That experience triggered an emotional tailspin resulting in one month of self-destructive behavior. On October 9, 2004, Tanya was admitted to a Behavioral Health Department in Laguna Beach, CA. There she was an inpatient for 10 days and outpatient for two months. Acknowledging her breakdown , and seeking treatment was the first step towards the healing she so badly needed. She knows from personal experience how mental illness affects everyone in a family.

She is highly motivated to help communities become aware of the stigma attached to mental illness. She is an advocate for the National Alliance of Mental Illness Maryland: NAMI/ MD and is their Honorary Chair for their Run/Walk event in Baltimore, MD in 2010. Tanya speaks quarterly to the outpatient program where she was once a patient and has supported the With Hope Foundation to help prevent teen suicide. Recently, she was invited to speak to the civilians, staff and returning military at The Pentagon sometime in 2010.

Tanya is also certified life coach who helps others help themselves by providing tools for heightened mental clarity and awareness. She has appeared on Larry King Live, The Early Show, Good Morning America, Inside Edition, and a variety of local media outlets in North America.