When Congress passed a law officially establishing the month of July as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month (MMHAM), we entered a new era. The goal of MMHAM was – and still is – to raise awareness of mental health issues among minorities. Bebe Moore Campbell had a mission: decrease social stigma, decrease cultural stigma, and raise awareness about structural inequities and discrimination that often prevent people in minority communities from seeking and getting the mental health treatment they need.
Bebe Moore Campbell is a renowned advocate and author whose best-selling books on mental health topics among African Americans are standard reading for anyone interested in the subject. But she’s best known for creating MHAM.
When Congress made MMAM official, Bebe Moore Campbell opened up about her personal, family connection to the issue of mental health:
“Once my loved ones accepted the diagnosis, healing began for the entire family, but it took too long. It took years. Can’t we, as a nation, begin to speed up that process? We need a national campaign to destigmatize mental illness, especially one targeted toward African Americans…It’s not shameful to have a mental illness. Get treatment. Recovery is possible.”
Mental Health America (MHA) typically chooses a basic theme for the month, which they use as a jumping-off point for their advocacy efforts. Here’s our article on MMHAM 2023, a year with a concise theme:
Minority Mental Health Month 2023: Culture, Connection, Community
MMHAM 2024 is slightly different. Rather than a headline-type theme, organizers chose to focus on raising awareness about the mental health-related challenges common in minority communities. These challenges include:
- Cultural and social stigma around mental health.
- Generational differences in understanding of and approach to mental health.
- Reluctance of people in minority communities to talk about mental health.
Mental Health America provides this free and helpful toolkit to help anyone interested in participating in MMHAM:
BIPOC Mental Health Month Toolkit
In this article, we’ll narrow the scope of our discussion to one section of the toolkit: debunking mental health myths prevalent in minority communities.
Mental Health Mythbusters: Breaking Down Stigma
In the BIPOC toolkit, Mental Health America (MHA) identifies at least six myths about seeking mental health support that persist in minority communities.
Note: BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. It’s a relatively recent acronym designed to foreground diversity in minority communities, and counter the idea that minority communities are homogenous, and only exist as the binary opposite of majority communities.
We’ll address these myths one at a time, including how the organizers at MMHAM suggest we can debunk them.
Myth 1: Asking for help/talking about my feelings is a sign of weakness.
We understand. Everyone wants to feel strong and capable of handling their own problems and managing their own affairs without any outside help. However, evolutionary science teaches us humans evolved in groups, and behavioral science demonstrates that most of us don’t do well in isolation. What that means is that it’s in our nature to rely on the help and support of others.
Showing vulnerability takes courage and is a sign of strength.
Your friends are likely to be willing to help in any way they can. If you can’t talk to your friends or peers, though, consider your close family. If you’re not comfortable doing that, then consider talking to aunts, uncles, or people in the community you trust. For ideas about how to start a conversation, click here.
Myth 2: What happens in the family should stay in the family.
In some minority cultures, the family unit is primary. This is true for many minority communities in the U.S. For a variety of reasons, there’s a powerful tradition of keeping any challenges or problems behind closed doors. The goal is for the family to present a strong, self-sufficient, unified image to the outside world: we can take care of ourselves.
What’s important to understand, from inside of this cultural frame of reference, is that getting support for mental health challenges by any single member of the family benefits the whole family. A person can take the tools they learn in treatment and use them to improve family communication, help keep the family dynamic smooth and balanced, and help other family members overcome the challenges they face.
Myth 3: Therapy is for crazy people.
Here’s what MHA has to say about this:
“Therapy is for everyone.”
It doesn’t matter who you are, how old you are, where you’re from, or whether you have a clinical diagnosis or not. Talking to a trained professional who takes the time to listen, get to know you, and help you overcome obstacles can help improve your life. Consider these BIPOC people who discuss how therapy has helped them:
- Charlamagne tha God
- Halle Berry
- Jay Z
- Simone Biles
- Naomi Osaka
Going to therapy can help you make connections between your emotions, thoughts, and actions, which can help promote productive behavior and reduce counterproductive behavior. In addition, a therapist can teach you practical skill to manage stress and effectively process challenging emotions.
Myth 4: Mental illness is a white people problem.
First, see Myth 3, above.
Second, consider the statistics from the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2022 NSDUH), which show the following rates of any mental illness among minority groups for people age 18+:
- Non-Hispanic, Multi-Racial: 35.2%
- Hispanic: 21.4%
- Black: 19.7%
- American/Alaskan Indigenous: 19.6%
- Asian: 16.8%
There’s another factor at work here. Data shows that around 85% of psychologists are white, but that has nothing to do with whether mental illness is exclusive to white people: it means there are more white therapists. This is slowly changing, though, and right now it is possible to find minority therapists and anti-racist therapists.
Myth 5: If you’re struggling, you aren’t praying enough.
Having a relationship with prayer, embracing spiritual traditions, and committing to spiritual development are at the root of many people’s lives. If spirituality, whether informal or organized, is important to you, you can find a therapist who shares your faith. To find counseling that aligns with a specific spiritual tradition, simply search online with terms that match your faith.
Myth 6: My ancestors and family had it worse, so I don’t have a right to feel how I do.
The people at MHA have an excellent take on this: two things can be true at the same time. Yes, your ancestors and family may have experienced racism and discrimination that’s far more extreme than anything you face, and you can feel immense gratitude for the strength and courage it took for them to survive. At the same time, you live in the here and now. It’s not only fine, but it’s beneficial for you, your family, and your descendants to recognize, discuss, and process your emotions in a healthy and productive manner. If you’ve heard of generational trauma, taking steps to heal yourself is the first step toward addressing the consequences of this persistent, damaging phenomenon.
Talking About Mental Health: Minority Mental Health Across the Generations
An important part of MMHAM this year is the fact that it’s relatively inward-directed. In the past, organizers focused on getting the message out to everyone. Minority groups, of course, but also non-minority groups in a position to leverage resources to support the immediate needs related to minority mental health. This year, the organizer target issues relevant to minority communities in general and offer insight and help for specific minority communities.
They also offer valuable resources people can use right away. They provide as tips on how younger and older generations can support one another, help finding BIPOC therapists, suggestions for how to ask for help from friends, and advice about how to get a mental health screening from a licensed, qualified professional – and then seek treatment if a screening indicates a clinical mental health issue.
This year, you can help. First, visit the Mental Health America website. Second, download the free toolkit (link in intro above). Third, share the excellent social media graphics far and wide.