We must stop blaming the stigma in the shortcomings of the black mental health

For years, as the case advanced back and forth before she eventually turned, my mother suffered silently, as she was heading to her direction with the federal government. I was in the third or fourth grade when I finally lost her case, but she did not talk about it and did not learn a lot of details until I was at the Graduate School.

My mother never showed the emotional or psychological losses of this nine -year legal battle because she does not want to affect my four siblings. Many may hear this and blame the stigma immediately about mental health within the black society, especially given Studies like thisThat found 63 % of black Americans believe that mental health is a sign of personal weakness.

However, in the case of my mother and many others, the stigma is an excessive simplification of mental health barriers facing colored people.

Stereotype

American Psychological Association identification The stigma of public shame as negative or discriminatory situations that others suffer from the mental illness. It has become an explanation of the transition to a decrease in participation in black societies with mental health services.

However, many barriers are closely related to resource deficiency and access. Historically, mental treatment, mental health and wellness were not part of the conversation in black families, and if not publicly discussed, the search for treatment is not a natural pathway. It is one of the reasons why some of my black patients ask whether they should lie on the sofa or if we need to discuss their childhood during treatment.

These stereotypes, which are likely to come from images of treatment in movies or TV shows, reflect the lack of familiarity that contributes to contrast to obtaining the care of black societies. In 2018, and I found CDC 58 % of American and African American adults 18-25 and 50 % of 26-49 adults with serious mental illness they did no Receive treatment.

The attribution of everything to the stigma is a harm to these non -therapists, because it involves an internal sound that led them away from treatment when it is likely that the option is never available.

The meeting of the people where they are

We should not appreciate the innovation that occurs on the ground. Churches, groups based on faith, and Barber Unofficial mental health has become, as black individuals often feel more comfortable talking about their struggles. To improve the experience, we must arm these groups with resources, training and access to mental health professionals, so that we can provide support in the spaces they already feel safe.

In order for many people to feel really comfortable with the therapist, they must feel a common sense of the values of society and Belonging. For black society, this often means a preference for the black supply, but there is not enough to meet the need. According to the hadith Statistics from the American Psychological AssociationOnly four percent of its members of black or African Americans.

There is no magic way to increase this number, but something we can do is to require all service providers training in cultural humility. Now, only 11 states in the United States It requires Psychologists have continuous education credits in diversity, but it is clear that all service providers must be trained so that they can treat patients properly from different backgrounds.

Even if the patient has the same social identity as a therapist or psychologist, it may not be the right person to treat them. For example, I am a black psychiatrist, but I am not a specialist in obsessive -compulsive disorder, so if I am dealing with a black patient with this particular issue, another better provider may be a better best for help – but only if they have a real understanding of unique cultural experiences and/or the racist shock that many face in society.

Focus on joy

While understanding racist shock is crucial to every mental health provider, it should not be the only axis of treatment for treatment. Do not understand me wrongly: racist shock is still taking place daily in black societies, but with BLM and other invitation groups, mental health does not always need to discuss it from this point of view.

By merging the celebration and black joy and Editing Psychology– Who focuses on empowerment, hope, strength and resistance to persecution – We can transform the narration away from the stigma and help black patients realize that there are more stories than their skin color.

Now that I am a psychiatrist, my family talks about mental health all the time. When I am talking to my mother now about the shock I faced in the federal government, she often says: “I wish I knew what I knew now.”

She did not avoid the topic or suffer silently due to the stigma. She did not simply have resources or understanding that mental health treatment was a potential solution to the negative feelings she faced.

After more than three decades, black society deserves more.

Dr. Jessica Jackson is a licensed psychologist and led by the Global Deib Care for Modern Health, a pioneering platform in the field of mental health in the workplace that supports more than 300 world -class institutions.

He must read more Suspension I published it luck: