Unusual Places as a Life-Saving Framework for Mental Healing

Key Quotes

"My family motto growing up was, 'We'll go anywhere once.' And so my dad has always been a history buff, but he's never shied away from sort of the weirder and grittier parts of American history. So, some of my early memories are definitely wandering around graveyards. I remember seeing the taxidermied horse of Stonewall Jackson in some weird museum in Virginia."

Caroline Muzzell Carlton explains that her family's adventurous motto fostered an early appreciation for history, even its less conventional aspects. This upbringing, which included visits to unusual historical sites and museums, laid the groundwork for her later pursuit of exploring unique places. Her father's willingness to engage with "weirder and grittier" history shaped her own perspective on exploration.

"For me, I grew up experiencing a lot of bullying over how I looked or the way that I acted, and I started to struggle a lot with thoughts of suicide. In fact, for certain parts of my life, I was hospitalized and was in treatment programs where it's kind of, you're not allowed to leave places like that. So it's kind of like a smaller existence. So for me, it was always trying to figure out how do I survive? How do I find a way to exist in this world?"

Caroline Muzzell Carlton describes the profound personal struggles she faced, including bullying and suicidal ideation, which led to hospitalization and treatment. She frames her challenge as a battle for survival and a quest to find a way to exist meaningfully in the world. This experience underscores the deep personal motivation behind her later goal of visiting a thousand places.

"So I used that book for a while, but then when I discovered Atlas Obscura, I was like, these sites are actually more interesting to me. They're more accessible, they're weirder. As I visit Atlas Obscura sites, I often learn about weird people like myself. I've seen amazing outsider art. And so reaching a thousand Atlas Obscura sites before I die became really, really important to me."

Caroline Muzzell Carlton explains her shift from a general travel book to the Atlas Obscura as a source of inspiration and purpose. She found the Atlas Obscura sites to be more engaging, accessible, and aligned with her own sense of self, which she describes as "weird." This discovery transformed her goal of visiting a thousand places into a deeply personal mission tied to self-discovery and acceptance.

"So going there and into some of the Van Gogh sites, and it's just been incredible to do that with some of my colleagues who have also struggled with thoughts of suicide. And I really look at this achievement of reaching a thousand sites as something that we did together. And it felt really special because it was all connected to the journey of healing and embracing our weirdness and our desire to live in a world that's not always normative."

Caroline Muzzell Carlton reflects on how her achievement of visiting a thousand Atlas Obscura sites became a shared experience with colleagues who also have histories of suicidal ideation. She views this accomplishment not just as a personal goal but as a collective journey of healing. This perspective highlights how shared exploration of unique places can be intertwined with embracing individuality and finding paths to well-being.

"And I checked it today and now eight people have been there. Yay! So when you add a site to the Atlas, like you really do change people's lives. You know, I don't, I don't struggle as much in my life anymore than when I started because the world just seems more weird and welcoming."

Caroline Muzzell Carlton shares the impact of contributing to the Atlas Obscura by adding new sites, noting how it directly influences others' experiences. She expresses that this act of sharing and discovery has personally reduced her own struggles. Caroline Muzzell Carlton believes that by making the world seem more "weird and welcoming," such contributions foster a greater sense of belonging and ease for individuals.