Jerilyn Ross (December 20, 1946, in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

– January 7, 2010, at

Sibley Memorial Hospital Sibley Memorial Hospital is a non-profit hospital located in The Palisades neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, and is licensed by the District of Columbia De ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

) was an American psychotherapist,

phobia A phobia is an anxiety disorder defined by a persistent and excessive fear of an object or situation. Phobias typically result in a rapid onset of fear and are usually present for more than six months. Those affected go to great lengths to avo ...

expert, and mental health activist. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

Benedict Carey Benedict Carey (born 3 March 1960) is an American journalist and reporter on medical and science topics for ''The New York Times''. Biography Carey was born on 3 March 1960 in San Francisco, and graduated from the University of Colorado with a d ...

described her as "one of the country’s most visible and effective advocates for those with mental health problems." Ross was born in the Bronx and graduated from the

State University of New York at Cortland State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

in 1968. She then worked as a math teacher at an elementary school in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

before receiving her master's in

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

from

The New School The New School is a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for progressive thinkers. ...

in 1975. In 1980, she co-founded the

Anxiety and Depression Association of America The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) is a U.S. nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing awareness and improving the diagnosis, treatment, and cure of anxiety disorders in children and adults. Anxiety disorder is a class ...

with

Robert DuPont Robert L. DuPont (born March 25, 1936 in Toledo, Ohio) is an American psychiatrist, known for his advocacy in the field of substance abuse. He is president of the Institute for Behavior and Health, whose mission is "to reduce the use of illegal d ...

, after previously working in his psychiatric practice. She served as the association's director from then until her death. From 1987 to 1992, she hosted her own weekly radio show on

WRC WRC may refer to: Broadcasting stations * WRC-TV, a television station (virtual channel 4, digital channel 34) licensed to Washington, D.C., United States * Several radio stations in the Washington, D.C. area: ** WTEM, a radio station (980 AM) l ...

, where she was known as the "phobia lady". On the show, she gave advice to callers who had phobia of a given thing; an especially common complaint she received was that callers were afraid to drive over the

Chesapeake Bay Bridge The Chesapeake Bay Bridge (also known locally as the Bay Bridge) is a major twin bridges, dual-span bridge in the U.S. state of Maryland. Spanning the Chesapeake Bay, it connects the state's rural Eastern Shore of Maryland, Eastern Shore regio ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. She died on January 7, 2010, of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, at the age of 63.

Books

*''Triumph Over Fear'' (with

Rosalynn Carter Eleanor Rosalynn Carter ( ; née Smith; born August 18, 1927) is an American writer and activist who served as First Lady of the United States from 1977 to 1981 as the wife of President Jimmy Carter. For decades, she has been a leading advocate ...

) ( Bantam, 1994) *''One Less Thing to Worry About'' (with Robin Cantor-Cooke) ( Ballantine, 2009)

References

1946 births 2010 deaths American psychotherapists Mental health activists People from the Bronx State University of New York at Cortland alumni The New School alumni American radio hosts Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C. {{US-activist-stub