The increasing prevalence of anti-Asian hate crimes threatens Asian Americans’ physical safety and endangers our mental health. The AAPI 2020-2021 National Report documented 3,795 anti-Asian hate incidents in the US from March 2020 to February 2021. Exposure to and fear of racism can lead to race-based traumatic stress.
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI) encountered difficulties seeking mental health care due to cultural stigma, language barriers, and insufficient access to culturally informed care. Pandemic-related stress, whether from fear of anti-Asian racism or of the coronavirus, can lead to or exacerbate mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
It is essential to know that anti-Asian racism has a long history in the US that started in the 1800s – including the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882 – and continues into today’s day and age. Hearing about hate incident after hate incident on the news might lead us to feel helpless and hopeless.
How can we Asian Americans stay well, both mentally and physically, amidst all this anti-Asian hate? Fortunately, there are many things we can actively do to empower ourselves and our AAPI community.
Report Hate Incidents
If you’ve experienced anti-Asian hate, you can report the hate incident at Stop AAPI Hate in English, Chinese, or nine other Asian languages. Reporting hate incidents can reduce race-based traumatic stress. Stop Asian Hate also has online resources on how to stay safe and deal with hate. See: Stopaapihate.org
Seek Immediate Help If In Crisis
If you feel like you are a danger to yourself or others, please seek help immediately by connecting with a mental health crisis hotline or contacting your local emergency services.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255) and the Crisis Text Line (text “HOME” to 741741) are available 24/7 for free, confidential crisis counseling.
If English is difficult for you, the Asian LifeNet Hotline (1-877-990-8585) offers 24-hour crisis counseling in Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, and Fujianese.
Seek Professional Support
If you need professional, non-emergency support for emotional or relational difficulties, many online directories can help you find a psychotherapist to see for therapy.
Psychology Today’s Find A Therapist directory is a national directory of psychotherapists. Results can be filtered by insurance, language, in-person therapy or teletherapy, and more. See: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists[EC4]
The Asian Mental Health Collective’s national APISAA Therapist Directory lists Asian, Pacific Islander, and South Asian psychotherapists by state. See: https://www.asianmhc.org/apisaa#massachusetts
The Massachusetts and Rhode Island Therapists of Color Directory lists psychotherapists of color, including by ethnicity and language(s) spoken. See: http://bit/ly/maripoctherapists
Educate Yourself
Educate yourself on mental illness, the American mental healthcare system, AAPI history, and anti-Asian racism in the US.
The MGH Center for Cross-Cultural Student Emotional Wellness publishes multilingual fact sheets on Asian American mental illness and anti-Asian racism. They also hold webinars and host the Let’s Talk! Conference on AAPI student mental health. See: https://www.mghstudentwellness.org/
The Asian Mental Health Collective hosts the Mental Health Mukbang podcast, where four Asian American psychotherapists discuss their professional and personal experiences with mental health. See: https://www.asianmhc.org/mentalhealthmukbang
The five-part PBS documentary series Asian Americans cover AAPI history, anti-Asian racism, and AAPI activism from the 1800s to the present. Available at https://www.pbs.org/show/asian-americans/ and on YouTube. English captions are available.
William James College and MGH CCCSEW’s “Guide for Parents of Asian/Asian American Adolescents” is a multilingual, multimedia toolkit on how to discuss anti-Asian racism with your children. Available in English, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Japanese. See: williamjames.edu/parentguide
Share Stories
Hearing other Asian Americans’ stories about mental illness can help us feel less alone in our struggles. Sharing your own story can also help you feel better understood and supported.
Project Harmonious at the University of Massachusetts Medical School collects Chinese Americans’ stories about mental illness and shares them on social media in English and Chinese. English and Chinese submissions are accepted and can be anonymous. See: https://projectharmonious.org/
Be In Community
Becoming involved with your local Chinese or Asian American community can help you develop a sense of belonging, receive support, and give back through volunteering.
Some Asian American community organizations in the Boston area include the Asian American Civic Association (https://aaca-boston.org/bayara/), Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center (https://bcnc.net/), Greater Boston Chinese Cultural Association (http://gbcca.org/), and Asian Women for Health (https://www.asianwomenforhealth.org/), which hosts the annual Asian American Mental Health Forum and the Achieving Whole Health wellness program in collaboration with NAAPIMHA. (Female-specific classes “Move On”, just to hang out.)
Music, art, or dance groups, churches, college Asian American clubs, local Chinese or Asian American organizations, and online communities are also great ways to connect with fellow Asian Americans.
No matter where you are in your understanding of mental health or anti-Asian racism in the US, please know that you are not alone. Let’s take care of our mental health and stand up for each other and our AAPI community.
Bio: Emily Chen (she/her) is a Taiwanese American mental health advocate, writer, and classical singer. She grew up in Newton, MA and is a graduate of DePauw University. Emily is the creator of DisOrient, a YouTube video series on Asian American mental health, neurodiversity, and representation. Learn more at her website: https://www.emilychenstudio.com/disorient
