“Being black already makes life hard…adding being gay on top [of] that is extremely difficult.” A student quote from a 2018 Human Rights Campaign report highlights the struggles LGBTQ+ youth of color face. Discrimination and mental health conditions are inextricably linked and without people that understand and offer support, LGBTQ+ youth of color are left alone.
In middle school, Juan Acosta was teased about his sexuality, something he didn’t fully understand yet. As a consequence, he struggled with his mental health and at one point even contemplated suicide. In an interview for our My Mental Health Journey series, Juan says, “I felt like such a big part of my being was intruded by assumptions that although were not wrong, made me feel ashamed for being who I was.”
Mental health and mental illness can be difficult to discuss, especially for teenagers who are already going through many changes and figuring life out. Social stigma and shame have painted mental health with a negative brush, causing many adolescents to struggle in silence. However, talking about mental health early is critical to developing healthy habits and well-being. Learning to chat about mental health while young equips people with tools they can use to support their mental health throughout their life.
Most mental health challenges begin early on in life. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), 50% of all lifetime mental illnesses start by age 14, and 75% by age 24. Knowing this, we have an obligation to ensure young people have the support they need to cope with mental health conditions.
Mental Health? What is that? I grew up questioning what mental health was. Growing up I did not learn in school or at home that one must care for their mental health. Conversations around the topic were little to none, and when the conversations presented themselves they were surrounded by stigma. I am a proud Mexican immigrant and recognize that my culture has a long way to go in addressing mental health. Growing up I watched and heard stuff in the media that taught boys to “toughen up,” and that if you showed emotion it was a sign of weakness, something to be ashamed of.
Only one-third of Californians who live with a mental illness receive the care they need. Our healthcare system often intervenes only when mental illness becomes serious or, in some cases, does not intervene at all. During Mental Health Awareness Month, we’re highlighting the need in our mental health system to prioritize reaching people early, talking about mental health and equipping them with the tools needed to maintain it. An essential step for people is understanding what mental health is and the differences between mental health, mental illness, and substance use disorders.
When the campus alert system at the University of California at Los Angeles notified students of a possible shooter this February and directed them to shelter in place, senior Meera Varma found herself surrounded by frightened students. She told the alarmed undergrads hunkered down in the dorm it was okay to be scared — a technique she’d learned in a mental health training.