To promote mental health awareness and well-being, Governor Inslee has proclaimed July 2015 as Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in Washington State. Join the Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs (CAPAA) in bringing awareness to this important issue and continuing the conversation into our communities during the month of July and beyond.
According to a 2011 report by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), suicide remains one of the top five leading causes of death for Asian Pacific Islanders (APIs) and APIs are less likely to seek mental health services than all other ethnic groups . Due to social stigmas, lack of access to health care, and cultural and language barriers, mental health conditions among APIs remain highly undiagnosed, untreated, and undiscussed.
Here’s what you can do:
- Share the proclamation with your family, friends, and community. Spread the word on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and use the tags #minoritymentalhealth and #hopestartswithyou.
- Share your story. Your voice is important! Let others know they are not alone and share your experience as someone living with mental health conditions or as a supporter. Submit your story to capaa@capaa.wa.gov.
- Talk with others. Make mental health the topic of discussion at work, your organization meetings, and church or community events. Creating a safe space to have conversations about mental health is an important step in eliminating stigma.
- Learn about resources that are available. Provide support to others by knowing how you can help and encouraging them to use mental health services.
- Asian Counseling and Referral Service
- International Community Health Services
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) – Greater Seattle
- National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association
- Governor’s Interagency Council on Health Disparities
- Crisis Clinic 24-Hour Crisis Line
- Call 1-866-4CRISIS (427-4747)
- Suicide Prevention Lifeline
- Call 1-800-273-8255
- International Examiner: Letter to the Editor
- Guest column in Northwest Asian Weekly
- Segment on Comcast Newsmakers
- Segment on Radio Hankook (Korean language radio in Federal Way)
- Guest column in Nguoi Viet Ngay Nay (Vietnamese media)
- Healthy Kitsap community event and resource fair
- CAPAA June board meeting
- ANHPI Mental Health, Tam Q. Dinh, Ph.D.
- Korean Community Service Center, Joomi Kim, Executive Director
- Segment on KOAM-TV promoting mental health awareness
- Joomi Kim, Executive Director of the Korean Community Service Center