Hate Crimes and Epidemic Are Driving More Asian-Americans to Seek Therapy

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, life was not as easy for Julian Sarafian as it seemed. He was a high school freshman, a White House intern, and a Harvard Law School graduate, but he also had a years-long battle with anxiety.

Then, in November of last year, he came in with Covid-19 symptoms and his girlfriend tested positive for the virus. In addition to her anxiety, months of social isolation, and fear for the safety of her Asian family members, the illness left her depressed.

“It was like the icing on the cake, which was like the middle finger of 2020,” he said.

Mr. Sarafyan, 27, from Sacramento, went to therapy a month later, but it wasn’t as simple as making a phone call. She had to explain to her family, including her Vietnamese mother, the reasons she needed the extra care.

After several months of therapy, she “got to a point where she looked much brighter than ever before,” she said.

Experts said mental health is heavily stigmatized among Asian Americans, who, like older generations of other cultures, tend to view therapy as dishonorable or a sign of weakness. But according to more than a dozen therapists, psychiatrists, and psychology professors, the specter of hate crimes by those linking the pandemic and the coronavirus to China has prompted a growing number of Asian Americans to overcome this stigma and turn to therapy for help.

“People were locked in their homes with their thoughts and worries and there was no way out,” said Lia Huynh, a psychotherapist in Milpitas, Calif.

More than 40 percent of Asian Americans were anxious or depressed during the pandemic, compared to less than 10 percent before the virus hit. Asian American Psychological Association. NS Kaiser Family Foundation found similar rates for all adult Americans, but experts said the numbers for Asian Americans are likely higher than reported because some Asian Americans are uncomfortable talking about mental health.

More than a year and a half after the pandemic, fear of hate crimes has not waned for a quarter of Asian adults in the United States. According to one report, they reported that in the last few months they were still afraid of being threatened or physically attacked. questionnaire Published this week by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health.

For Jess Stowe, 35, and Terry Wei, 36, Covid was scary enough, but now they’re worried about being attacked.

“Hate against Asians is more terrible than the global epidemic,” said Ms. Wei, who hosted the podcast. “Unmodeled Minorities” With Miss Stowe. “I can’t change what people fear.”

This fear was fueled in part by President Donald J. Trump’s racist descriptions of the virus, which propagated the false narrative that Asian-Americans were responsible for the pandemic.

One-third of Asian Americans surveyed Pew Research Center He said they feared being attacked in April. According to the researchers, anti-Asian hate crimes in the country’s largest cities rose 164 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the first quarter of last year. California State University, San Bernardino. Overall, hate crimes rose 2 percent last year, the researchers said.

According to one study, Asian Americans, African Americans, and Hispanic people tend to view their mental health as more stigmatized than European Americans. study It was published last year in the BMC Public Health journal.

This view, however, did hold for some Asian Americans on March 16, six Asian women. targeted because of their race, NS Shot to death in hot springs in the Atlanta area. Asian American communities spoke of anti-Asian violence, but that dialogue became part of the national conversation after the shooting.

According to mental health experts, many Asian Americans have realized that hate crimes are a life-threatening reality.

After a year dealing with racist microaggressions and health issues and enduring lifetimes of institutional racism and mental health stigma, the shootings have been the impetus for many Asian Americans to enroll in therapy.

“People were suffering so much that it finally took away the stigma,” said Diana Liao, a mental health counselor and psychotherapist in New York City.

Catherine Vuky, clinical supervisor at the South Cove Community Health Center in Boston, said some Asian therapists have been flooded with requests from companies and organizations looking to host support groups for employees.

Satsuki Ina, a psychotherapist, said some older Japanese Americans came to her because hate crimes evoked memories of when the US government locked them in the house. concentration camps during World War II.

Psychotherapist Ms. Huynh, from California, said she received a lot of calls from patients who had trouble finding a therapist who understood their culture. “People are like, ‘I just want someone who understands that I can’t talk to my family,'” she said.

The mental toll of threats and attacks has had a hard time balancing “against principle” for some.save face“One idea shared among many Asian immigrants is that people will get a bad reputation if they don’t protect their reputation.

Kevin M. Chun, a professor of psychology at the University of San Francisco, said that traditionally in Asian cultures, therapy has been viewed as a way to discredit.

Doris Chang, an associate professor of psychology at New York University, said there has been a generational barrier to mental health care. Younger people are less likely to have internalized stigma about mental health, and older people are more likely to think they can solve their problems without help.

While the next generation of Asian Americans can start a different discussion about mental health, measures like therapy cannot solve a problem they haven’t started, said Sherry C. Wang, an associate professor of counseling psychology at Santa Clara University.

“We would all be safer, healthier and happier if everyone took the step to say, ‘Stop anti-Asian hatred,’ and advocate belonging to Asian Americans,” he said.