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The early 2023 shootings in Monterey Park and Halfmoon Bay have triggered widespread scrutiny of the mental health of both the Asian perpetrators and the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community as a whole. These discussions reflect the media’s tendency to speculate about the mental health of the perpetrator whenever violent events occur.

But experts say that the link between violence and mental health is far more complex. And for Asian Americans, living in an era of anti-Asian violence has created other mental health effects that only exacerbate existing disparities within the community.

AsAmNews spoke to psychologists, activists, and experts to understand the mental health impacts of violence within the AAPI community, and how to support those who are struggling with these heavily stigmatized issues.

Contrary to public perception, the evidence linking mental health and violence is weak, according to many experts. Major organizations such as the American Psychological Association and MentalHealth.gov, agree that the majority of people who commit violence don’t have mental illnesses. In fact, evidence suggests that people with mental illnesses are more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators themselves.

According to Dr. Jeff Mio, a retired psychology professor at Cal Poly Pomona, the common association of mental health with violence is a result of a phenomenon called “illusory correlation.” This effect occurs when two infrequent events happen together, creating the illusion that they are both more common than they are in reality.

“If someone who is mentally ill also uses a firearm or engages in some sort of violence, then you have two relatively infrequent events co-occurring,” says Mio. “And then observers look at that and say, ‘then they must occur a lot.’”

The illusory correlation between mental health and violence could worsen the already heavy stigma surrounding mental illness. Dr. Michi Fu, a licensed psychologist specializing in cross-cultural and international mental health, says those assumptions are “frightening,” and may discourage people struggling with their mental health from finding help.

Read more at AsAmNews.com.

Symptoms of depression increased in young, low-income Latino adults during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a study by the Center for Environmental Research and Children’s Health at UC Berkeley School of Public Health. In contrast, symptoms of anxiety decreased overall but rose when there was arguing in the home or other pandemic-related stressors.

The study analyzed data from 309 young adults, aged 18 to about 20 and predominantly of Mexican origin. Researchers compared the mental health of young adults before March 2020 with data collected in June 2021 to determine if their mental health worsened during the pandemic. Participants answered questions about economic, educational, and social stressors and were assessed for symptoms of anxiety and depression. The results revealed an increase in depressive symptoms in general, while exploratory analyses suggested women may be more vulnerable to pandemic stressors.

“There has been a lot of interest in how the pandemic affected the mental health of the US population,” said Julianna Deardorff, associate professor of maternal, child, and adolescent health at Berkeley Public Health. “However, few longitudinal studies have focused on young adults, particularly those from historically marginalized backgrounds, who were likely experiencing multiple stressors simultaneously.”

The majority of participants lived at home, with more than 95% at or below 200% of the poverty line. The findings corroborated earlier research that showed Latinx individuals, women, and low-income people have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

Read more at PublicHealth.Berkeley.edu.

A new Hawaii report shows the number of suicides, completed and attempts, just keeps going up in the islands.

A local mental health advocate said a resident in Hawaii dies from suicide every two days.

Two hundred suicides were confirmed in 2022 and an additional 14 were undetermined. Three hundred hospitalizations took place for attempted suicides. More than 500 residents took a visit to the emergency room and almost 1,000 calls were to the Hawaii Poison hotline.

“If it’s not paradise for you, then we have to refocus and make sure we’re taking care of ourselves and pay attention to our mental health. Maybe we have that extra pressure that it’s supposed to be paradise here, which is a big myth,” said Kathleen Merriam, co-chair of American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

According to the Hawaii Department of Health (DOH), suicide is the leading cause of death for people aged between 15 to 44 and it is the highest in youth and teenagers.

“There’s a whole other number of people that attempt suicide. That’s very serious and of course attempters are at risk for attempting again. Then there’s…another segment of our population that think about suicide,” said Merriam.

Read more at KITV.com.

Queer, Trans, and Two-Spirit folks are strong and resilient. As many of us know, mental health challenges impact many folks from these and other communities. Unjustly, mental health challenges are even more prevalent in 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, and this is likely due to several important reasons. Understanding why can lend therapists insights on how best to support these communities and even offer guidance to community agencies and government in how to best financially support solutions to combat this trend.

One of the key factors can be explained by a phenomenon known as minority stress theory. This theory refers to the additional stress that individuals from underserved communities experience as a result of their minority status– in this case, queer, trans and Two-Spirit individuals. These groups face a significant amount of oppression due to prejudice, discrimination, and victimization based on their sexual orientation, gender identity, and cultural identity. This oppression can take a toll on mental health and lead to higher rates of anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions. The applications of minority stress theory are very important to understand, which we will dive deeper into, below.

One application is the lack of acceptance and support that many queer, trans and Two-Spirit individuals face. Many folks from these communities experience rejection from their un-chosen families, friends, and all throughout society, in work, school and peer settings. These experiences may all negatively impact their self-esteem and sense of belonging. This can lead especially to feelings of isolation and loneliness, which can have a significant impact on one’s mental health.

Access to mental health care is another issue that affects queer, trans and Two-Spirit communities. Queer and trans individuals may face barriers in accessing mental health services, a lack of culturally-competent providers or therapists with queer-lived experience, as well as financial barriers. They may also fear discrimination or judgment from mental health providers, which can prevent them from seeking the care they need.

Read more at Qmunity.ca.

There are a variety of gender inequalities in society today, and mental health is one of the biggest areas where gender inequality in health care is apparent.

In the U.S. there is a disparity between genders in terms of traits and characteristics that are more visible in one gender than the other, leading to more boys being referred for mental health treatment than girls. This is because boys tend to externalize what they are going through, while girls internalize more. Teachers are also less likely to refer someone to treatment if their academic performance isn’t suffering, which is also a trait more common in females, as they tend to perform better in school in comparison to males. For example, ADHD often goes undiagnosed in females because of the different ways it presents in females as opposed to males. Females tend to do more daydreaming, while males tend to be more active, hyper, and external with their symptoms.

Gender differences as they relate to mental health continue into adolescence. Males are socialized to see therapy and opening up about their feelings and emotions as a weakness, while women are encouraged to do so. In their teen years, girls are more likely to talk with a trusted friend about any struggles they are facing than boys are. This feeds into the stigma surrounding mental health that’s been slowly challenged over the years. It also leads to men being more resistant toward therapy and mental health services into adulthood.

When it comes to diagnosing mental health disorders and the overall prevalence rates, the most common mental health disorders, such as depression, are nearly twice as likely to be diagnosed in females than in males, even when the two present with identical symptoms. Furthermore, women are more likely to be prescribed medications, while men are more likely to be diagnosed with substance use disorders. The same can be said of anxiety, which is another common mental health disorder more commonly diagnosed in women.

Socioeconomic status has also been linked to greater gender gaps in mental health treatment and diagnosis. Women account for 70% of the world’s lowest paid workers, and these gender roles and pay gap inequalities still exist in society today.

Read more at HealthNews.com.

During a conversation at the Asian American Cultural Center on March 9, psychologist Jenny Tzu-Mei Wang opened up about the stigmatization of mental health challenges in AAPI communities and the inspiration behind her 2022 book: “Permission to Come Home” — a resource aimed at helping Asian Americans reclaim their psychological narratives.

The event saw attendance from undergraduate and graduate students, Assistant Dean and AACC Director Joliana Yee and several staff members from Yale Mental Health and Counseling. Event moderator Melodie Grace Liu GRD ’27 kicked off the afternoon by reading a section of the book that explored compassion, an entity that Wang referred to as the “final” and perhaps most “elusive” condition in the “search for home.”

That search for belonging has cemented itself as the core of Wang’s own pursuit of psychology, which started with self-introspection and the comfort of being open with herself.

“I’m a firm believer that my ability to be present with the people who need me really depends on my ability to understand my struggle [and] my wounds first,” Wang said. “I use this analogy a lot — like if I have a gash in my arm, and then somebody says to me I have a cut in my leg, I’m gonna have a hard time paying attention to the fact that they have a cut in their life, because I’m also struggling. And so until I can get to a point where I feel strong enough to carry my struggle, I’m gonna have a really hard time holding somebody’s presence [and] holding that space for them.”

“Modeling the … early stages of grief and mental health… doesn’t always look like: let’s sit down, talk about all your traumas, all of [these things] that the elderly spent a lifetime trying to protect,” Wang said. “Maybe it’s not the talking, [but] the being with. Let me watch a drama, right, let me do something that helps my body feel safe and [that makes them] feel safe with me.”

Read more at YaleDailyNews.com.