5 Reasons This Year's TEDx Syracuse Theme Is the Best, Biggest 'Glitch' Ever
I had my first TEDx rehearsal this weekend. It was a great chance for us all to orient ourselves on the amazing concept of TED’s “ideas worth spreading” and work out our own “glitches.” 
In fact, the theme of this year’s TEDx at Syracuse University happens to be… Glitch. 
What would you define as a “glitch?” Here’s one dictionary definition:
1. suffer a sudden malfunction or irregularity.
2. a minor problem that causes a temporary setback
I think the better question is, who hasn’t had a glitch in life?
I’d define a “glitch” as a detour — you know, something in life that doesn’t go as you expect. Nobody expects a detour to happen. It’s what happens when we think we have things planned and all figured out… and then we’re thrown a curveball. I’m excited about the “Glitch” theme for this year’s TEDx. What is life without the imperfections, the “malfunctions” and “irregularities” to keep us on our toes and push us to learn, change, adapt and grow?
We all experience glitches in life. Here are five reasons why “Glitch” might be the best TEDx theme ever:
1. Glitches give us a chance to revisit and revise. When we spot an “imperfection,” we’re forced to pause and give it more careful thought. We’re challenged to work on something we might have glossed over or might have easily overlooked. Glitches demand attention, a different approach, a new way of problem-solving.
2. Glitches give us character. In a world of sameness and uniformity, it’s the mistakes that are our uniqueness. Our “flaws” allow us to stand out. A glitch is individuality — a mistake that’s unmistakably you.
3. Glitches make us who we are. What glitches and detours force us to do is explore new opportunities. When we can’t go in the direction we anticipated, we’ve got to switch gears and adapt. We have to resource inner strengths we never knew we were capable of accessing. When we achieve the “unthinkable,” we discover who we really are.
4. Glitches make our stories. Think of a favorite adventure movie. Every good plot has an unexpected twist of events. If life went exactly as you planned, where would the excitement be? The best stories are the ones with surprising “glitches” and turns. Glitches lead to discovery, epiphanies happy accidents. Did you know potato chips were invented by a glitch?
5. Glitches connect us. We all have things in life that don’t go as we expect. We all make mistakes and experience “failure.” The more we share our “glitches” the more we realize we’re not alone — and there is strength built in community. A world of “glitches” is a world of uniqueness, empathy, compassion and change. Bonus reason? Glitch is a pretty fun word to say.
Glitches have an upside. Glitches allow us to welcome the unexpected change in our “thought-out” life and see what opportunities may arise. I’m living proof that a glitch can lead to unexpected blessings. If I took away all of the setbacks, hurdles, frustrations and glitches, I wouldn’t be who I am today… giving a TEDx Talk on glitches. Glitches are most certainly happy, liberating and open-ended discoveries. How can you make a “glitch” today? 
See you at TEDx! Amy will be speaking at TEDx Syracuse on April 16, 2016. Learn about her mental health advocacy programs for students, and find out how to take part in the #LoveMyDetour movement, striving to create compassion through stories.
Amy Oestreicher is a PTSD peer-to-peer specialist, artist, author, writer for The Huffington Post, speaker for TEDx and RAINN, health advocate, award-winning actress, and playwright. As a survivor and “thriver” of nearly 30 surgeries, a coma, sexual abuse, organ failure, and a decade of medical trauma, Amy has been challenged with moments of extreme difficulty. But, as an artist, actress, college student, and overall lover of life, Amy eagerly shares the lessons learned from trauma and has brought out the stories that unite us all through her writing, mixed media art, performance and inspirational speaking. Amy has headlined international conferences on women’s leadership, entrepreneurship, mental health, disability, creativity, art therapy, and domestic violence prevention. She is a regular lifestyle, wellness, and arts contributor for over 70 notable online and print publications, and and her story has appeared on NBC’s TODAY, CBS, Cosmopolitan, Seventeen Magazine, Washington Post, Good Housekeeping, MSNBC, among others. She has devised workshops for the Transformative Language Arts Network National Conference, the Eating Recovery Foundation, the 40th Anniversary New England Educational Opportunity Association Milestones Conference, the Annual National Mental Health America Conference, and others, and was this year’s keynote speaker for the Hawaii Pacific Rim International Conference on Diversity and Disability. To celebrate her own “beautiful detour”, Amy created the #LoveMyDetour campaign, to help others cope in the face of unexpected events. To creatively engage others in improving mental health , Amy developed a program combining mental health advocacy, sexual assault awareness, PTSD education and Broadway Theatre for college campuses, organizations and conferences, launching a Detourist Network, and Detourist Workshops to creatively fight stigma in society. “Detourism” is also the subject of her TEDx Talk and upcoming book, My Beautiful Detour, available December 2017. As the 2014 Eastern Regional Recipient of Convatec’s Great Comebacks Award and WEGO Health 2016 “Health Activist Hero,” Amy is a passionate voice in the ostomy community, founding the online community Fearless Ostomates, speaking for National and Regional WOCN conferences, and writing for the official print publication of the UOAA. Her presentations on alternative medicine, and patient advocacy and healthcare have also been accepted to international conferences on patient care, internal medicine, medical trauma and therapeutic humor in healthcare. As a playwright, Amy has received awards and accolades for engaging her audiences in dynamic conversation on trauma’s effects on society, including Women Around Town’s “Women to Celebrate 2014, BroadwayWorld Best Theatre Debut, and Bistro Awards New York Top Pick. Amy has written, directed and starred in a one-woman musical about her life, Gutless & Grateful, touring theatres, schools, festivals, conventions and organizations since it’s 2012 New York debut. Her original, full-length drama, Imprints, exploring the effects of trauma on the family and the healing power of creativity, was a finalist at Manhattan Repertory Theatre, and is currently in development for a full New York production. Amy’s collaboration with Beechwood Arts on “Resilience and the Power of the Human Spirit”, has traveled around the world, using her monologues, art, writing and recipes to express the life-altering detours and ultimately the invaluable gifts of her resilient journey. She is also a passionate arts advocate, a successful mixed media visual artist, a continuing education studio arts teacher, and an active member of the League of Professional Theatre Women, League for Advancement of New England Storytellers, Fairfield County Cultural Alliance, Theatre Artist Workshop, and several art guilds throughout Connecticut and New York. Amy is currently touring the country with her one-woman musical, Gutless & Grateful, her keynote presentations, workshops and signature talkbacks, which she has devised specialized versions for corporations, college campuses, survivors, healthcare professionals, and artists. She is leading mixed media creativity workshops to promote creativity as a mindset, an essential survival skill. Amy also offers creative coaching and consulting services help others navigate their own “life detours,” and prides herself most on ending each night with a gratitude list. Together, we’re stronger.
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