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How I Learned To Talk To My Filipino Mom About My Mental Health (www.npr.org/)

 

"She responded: "You don't need therapy. You're fine. Imagine what it was like for me." She then recited the story I had heard so many times before. She came alone to this country from the Philippines in the early 1980s. She raised my little sister and me as a single mom. She worked two jobs to support us, including working grueling overnight shifts and holidays. Life was hard. Really hard."

"She didn't think that what I was going through was a big deal. This absolutely crushed me. Whatever problems I might have as her American-born daughter in the richest country on earth, they were nothing compared to hers."

"It turns out Filipinos care a lot about what their family members think. Filipinos, he says, are some of the most collectivistic people in the world. What that means, he says, is that "we don't just care about ourselves — we are family-centered and our parents are a big part of our lives.""

"So, while mental health carries a societal stigma — or even shame — for everyone, "for Filipinos, that shame is doubled," he says. "Not only do we not want to shame ourselves, we don't want to bring shame to our family.""

"That stigma may contribute to a startling picture of Filipino mental health in America. A 2015 review found that Filipino-Americans have some of the highest rates of depression among Asian-Americans. Another study found that Filipino-American adolescent girls have some of the highest rates of suicidal thoughts in America. Yet Filipino-Americans across the board seek mental health treatment at some of the lowest rates."

"For nearly 400 years, the Spanish ruled the country, followed by half a century of American occupation. "For years, Filipinos were told what to do and to accept it," he says. "So dealing with the cards we were dealt — it's a coping mechanism.""

To read more of Malaka Gharib's article, click: https://www.npr.org/sections/h...IuuweZZDiVPfkFdEwu6U

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