‘No shame in saying I have PTSD.’ State Rep. Emily Slosberg opens up about diagnosis

State Rep. Emily Slosberg is still haunted by a horrific car crash that killed her twin sister more than 20 years ago and left her badly injured.

Slosberg was involuntarily hospitalized in October for a mental health evaluation under the state’s Baker Act. The Boca Raton legislator said the incident stemmed from years of trying to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder caused by a 1996 car crash that killed her sister, Dori, and four others.

Only 14 at the time, Slosberg was one of the teenagers crammed into the car that crashed, and she spent a month in the hospital. Her physical wounds healed, but the emotional and mental damage remained raw, she said.

“When there is a mental illness, people want to sweep it under the rug, but it’s real," said Slosberg, 38. "Just because you can’t see the physical injury, it’s real.”

She added, “I have no shame in coming out and saying I have PTSD.”

On Tuesday, Slosberg spoke for the first time publicly about her mental health. She said she is doing much better after undergoing treatment, and the experience has inspired her to push for more mental health funding in Florida.

In the past, politicians have hidden mental illness, viewing it as a weakness that an opponent could exploit. In one example from 1972, Thomas Eagleton lost his spot on Democratic presidential nominee George McGovern’s ticket when it was revealed Eagleton had undergone electroshock therapy for depression.

But as advocates work to break the stigma often associated with mental illness, elected officials are becoming more willing to talk about their mental health. Earlier this year, Minnesota U.S. Sen. Tina Smith discussed her battles with depression when calling for more mental health funding.

One of Slosberg’s colleagues -- state Rep. Anna Eskamani -- said she thinks the times are changing, and voters relate more to politicians who are honest about their experiences.

“There is such power in vulnerability and speaking of your health struggles,” said Eskamani, a 29-year-old Democrat from Orlando. “Your constituents are going through the same things. We should be able to look at politicians as human."

Eskamani said she started seeing a therapist about three years ago because of the pain she still felt from losing her mother to cancer when she was 13. Even though politicians are more receptive to sharing their experiences, she suspects many legislators stay quiet because they fear disclosing a mental illness could ruin their political career.

Slosberg’s mental health played out publicly because of an Oct. 7 report taken by the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. A deputy responded to a call involving a “suicidal female” who had been observed acting erratically.

In the report, Slosberg told deputies that she was not taking her medication and has depression. She complained that her hands were “on fire,” even though there were no visible injuries, according to the report. A security officer told a deputy that he saw Slosberg chasing a car out of her father’s neighborhood and trying to open the car door.

She was taken to Delray Medical Center, according to the report.

Slosberg said her health issues haven’t affected her ability to effectively serve the people she represents. She missed legislative committee meetings during the week of Oct. 14, but Slosberg said she was able to return to work in early November. On Tuesday, she was at a Palm Beach County legislative delegation meeting in Loxahatchee.

Slosberg had another encounter with law enforcement earlier this year, in January, involving trespassing allegations at her former Boca Raton residence that she had sold. Slosberg was accused of hiring a locksmith to “unlawfully” swap out the front door locks for the Caliente Lane home she sold in December.

She avoided prosecution on two misdemeanor charges through a deal to pay $500 to the victims in the case and complete 25 hours of community service.

Slosberg was elected in 2016 to a seat previously held by her father, Irv Slosberg. She ran unopposed in 2018.

As a legislator, Slosberg championed Florida’s texting-while-driving law, which was passed earlier this year after several years of failed attempts. She’s used the story of the car crash to sway legislators to support the law.

Slosberg was one of seven middle-schoolers who piled into the back seat of a car that crashed into an oncoming vehicle at 90 mph, hurling the teens in the back seat through the rear window. Emily Slosberg’s identical twin, Dori, was among the five killed; Slosberg suffered broken bones and a punctured lung in the crash. The 19-year-old driver and a front-seat passenger survived, as did another girl in the back seat, who was paralyzed. The 19-year-old driver was convicted of manslaughter and served 13 years in prison.

With the legislative session set to start Jan. 14, Slosberg said she is ready to get to work. Florida consistently ranks near the bottom when it comes to per-person mental health funding, and Slosberg said she wants to create a legislative committee to focus specifically on that issue.

“More than ever, I am inspired to fight for those who are underrepresented,” Slosberg said.

Skyler Swisher can be reached at sswisher@sunsentinel.com, 561-243-6634 or @SkylerSwisher.

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