People of color and mental health
Research shows that black people are more likely to report persistent symptoms of emotional distress than white people. However, only one in three black adults who need treatment actually receive it. One of the reasons for this is there is a large stigma against mental health in the black community, many view mental health issues as a personal weakness.
Indigenous people have much higher rates of mental illness:
Indigenous people have much higher rates of mental illness:
- 21% of indigenous Americans over 18 reported experiencing mental illness compared to 17.9% of the general population.
- Indigenous children and adolescents have the highest rates of lifetime major depressive episodes.
- Suicide is the second leading cause of death among indigenous Americans ages 10-34.
mistreatment
Even when these groups do seek help, they often don't receive consistent, good treatment. People of color (POC) can struggle to empathize with white mental health professionals. Many white professionals do not have cultural competency, they can have limited knowledge on structural issues that can impact a patient's life. It's also common for medical professionals to simply not believe POC when they complain about their issues, this applies to mental health as well. When they don't receive proper treatment, their mental illness continues to go untreated. Internalized racism within mental health professionals plays a part as well, leading many to be pushed away from treatment.
Individual experiences
Dr. Nicole Christian-Brathwaite is a psychiatrist who speaks about her experiences as a black woman in her occupation. She mentions that before she went to medical school, she taught kids in a low-income neighborhood for a year. She noticed that the children who struggled the most in school weren't kids with significant medical problems, but rather kids who were experiencing major trauma. Christian-Brathwaite talks about how when she was experiencing postpartum depression, she was reluctant to seek help because of the stigma. She also mentions how many black parents are reluctant to seek treatment for their children because they fear them being "labeled" and she has to remind them that black children are often punished for things that white children get treatment for.