Growing up, Carrie Zhang - the founder of The Asian Mental Health Project - felt as though she had no right to talk about her mounting struggles with sadness and anxiety. You see, her parents - two immigrants from China and Taiwan - could simply not understand why their child might be unhappy. After all, they had sacrificed so much in order to give her a chance at prosperity and success.
As a result, Carrie did not find help processing trauma, depression, and anxiety until much later when her university offered mental healthcare services. She now spends her time aiding other Asian Americans to overcome cultural and systemic barriers to mental health through the Asian Mental Health Project.
In this episode, we talk with Carrie about her personal awakening to mental health hygiene, the cultural stigmas & institutional bias preventing the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American community - APIDA for short - from receiving the help they need, and finally what we all can do about it.
Resources:
- Our Website: www.mentalnotepodcast.com
- Free mental health assessment: (877) 850-7199
- Asian Mental Health Project Instagram: @AsianMentalHealthProject
- OCA National: OCANational.org
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