Tiktok
My name is Ryan Barry (25), and I am a Tiktok influencer with Cystic Fibrosis. I was born and raised in central Texas with my older brother, Cullen, and my older sister, Kaitlin. I grew up incredibly active playing all sports but primarily soccer - to which I credit much of my health today. I enjoy painting, easily obsess over fantasy books, and I love skydiving / adrenaline sports. I'm a firm Catholic & I believe positivity, confidence, and humor are keys to an enjoyable life. While CF is primarily a physcial challenge, I'm deeply aware of my spiritual, mental, and emotional health.
When I turned 23, I was still insecure of telling people I have CF. IMAGINE. A WHOLE GROWN MAN WITH SELF ESTEEM ISSUES??? C'mon.
Of course I had the childhood horror stories of Christmas / birthdays in the hospital, had a feeding tube for +9 years, got super sketchy bacterias, (super recovered), coughed anywhere/everywhere, and enjoyed the classic "growing up with CF" deal. So with all of this insight and life experience, I decided to start making videos online to show the "weakest" parts of who I am. I figured if people could love me for all of my flaws, I could do anything. Now, a few years later, I have 400K followers on social media and am outspoken about self-care, faith, and living life to the max. God is wonderful isn't he? π In my presentation I'll explain the art of vulnerability, how social media is an incredible tool for advocating a cause, and I'll sprinkle in a few ADHD things about myself along the way.
You may wonder how I'm speaking at the NACFC. Here are my qualifications to the haters / doubters:
Have I written any books? No. Have I run any marathons? No. Have I become an absolute beast at Mario Kart on the Wii? Yes.
Truth is, I am hopeful to provide insight to daily living and the inner workings of life with Cystic Fibrosis. If I can touch the heart of one person at this conference, that is enough for me. The future is bright and we're gonna beat the hell out of CF (respectfully.) I'm deepy thankful for the invitation to speak at this event, and to be involved in a community as beautiful as ours! We are worthy, deserving, and capable of every good thing that comes our way. Enjoy the conference. π€πΌπ€
DG10--Education: From Binders & Checklists to YouTube and TikTok
Thursday, November 2, 2023
7:15 AM – 9:15 AM MST