To be the child of an immigrant means growing up faster.To be the child of an immigrant means taking responsibility for your family.To be the child of an immigrant is to carry the hopes and dreams of your lineage.The pressure that children of immigrants face is high, and the mental health support is low.July is Minority Mental Health Month, and there have been many articles published providing insight into the cultural complications of mental health for people of color.I feel as if many mental health pieces in regards to youth of color tend to demonize parents as strict, stubborn, and unsympathetic towards mental health struggles.
In the case of Asian parents, fault is ascribed to the Model Minority Myth (which is strongly upheld in many Asian households through strict academic and behavioral standards) and Asian stigma around mental illness.
As a Chinese-American woman, I too have kept my mental health struggles under wraps for these reasons.
Of course, my experience does not encompass all Chinese or all immigrant lives; however, I would like to share my story as it pertains to my identity in order to provide further insight on just how emotionally and practically complicated acknowledging mental health struggles and seeking treatment can be.Why I Can’t Tell My Parents About My Mental Illness:Immigrant GuiltRegardless of their background, a great number of immigrants come to a different country to completely start anew.
Instead, they rest their purpose on providing the best they can for their children.
They sacrifice their hopes and dreams so that someday their children can have the opportunity to make their own hopes and dreams come true.