July is Minority Mental Health Awareness Month—a month dedicated to highlighting the unique struggles surrounding mental health in marginalized and underrepresented populations. In honor of the occasion, I wanted to reflect on my experiences as a young Black man navigating my own mental health and the systems around me.
Historically, Black Americans are less likely to receive diagnosis and treatment for mental health issues. We’ve also seen the inverse of this trend, with disparities such as higher rates of diagnosis for Schizophrenia and other mental health conditions. Mental health continues to be an obstacle for many Black Americans since we are often working against racism and discrimination in the medical field, inequalities in access to care and the stigma associated with seeking help—all at the same time.
I’ve experienced all of these challenges at some point in my life, and my experience is not uncommon in the Black community. Stigma surrounding therapy—compounded by disparities in access and representation from service providers—deter a lot of people from seeking help in the first place. Unfortunately, most therapists either do not accept insurance or they are very selective in which ones they do, which makes it harder for those who are seeking help to be able to find a therapist they can afford and one that fits their needs.
It has been shown that daily exposure to racism and prejudice over time can affect both emotional and physical wellbeing, so it is imperative to find a therapist who can understand acknowledge these feelings properly. Unfortunately, there is a lack of representation in this field which leads many Black Americans to have to try multiple therapists to find the right one or wait longer for services. This is why it is critically important for mental health providers and all of us as a culture to have an intersectional approach to mental health and consider everyone’s perspective.
By continuing to have these conversations and encouraging others to share their experiences, we can work to actively to break down the walls of stigma and develop a deeper understanding for one another.
– Collin Walden, CURA Strategies