A GoodTherapy.org News Summary

Mental health as a professional and academic field has been riddled with controversial issues in human nature, gender differences, income disparities, and other major social divides throughout its history in the United States, though most modern practitioners and advocates can be pleased with the progress that has taken place in these areas over the past several years. While a strong percentage of therapists and other professionals are likely to suspect that issues in racial discrimination have largely or even entirely been abolished, a professor of psychiatry and women’s studies has recently released a statement along with a book about the ongoing issue of the mis-diagnosis of schizophrenia among black men.

The professor notes that black men are up to four times as likely to be mis-diagnosed with schizophrenia than those of other ethnic backgrounds, an issue that likely stems from popular ideas about the nature of mental illness in general and schizophrenia in particular during the civil rights movement in the US. Black men who were involved in protests and other actions were often institutionalized, and various personality traits were then associated with schizophrenia as a mental health concern. Read the rest of this entry

© Copyright 2010 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Redondo Beach Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

A GoodTherapy.org News Headline

Many factors may be involved in the quality of care with which mental health clients are served, but a principle aim within the mental health community is that race should not be a determinant. Unfortunately, race has been connected to the quality of care in a recent study performed at George Mason University. The researchers found that Caucasian populations were more likely to travel longer distances to receive better mental health treatment, while African-American and Hispanic community members tended to travel less and receive a poorer standard of care. The study points to a need to develop greater treatment options in neighborhoods predominantly populated by minorities.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Anchorage Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

A GoodTherapy.org News Headline

While obtaining mental health services able to truly make a long-term difference in personal well-being and prosperity is a challenge for many people in the United States, low-income minorities are often faced with especially difficult pathways to care. Whether because of language and cultural barriers or discriminatory treatment, many Asian Americans find themselves unable to receive help, even though many struggle with the effects of trauma and distress caused by the Vietnam War and other conflicts. A rising source of hope for this community, however, is Los Angeles’ Asian Pacific Family Center. Garnering attention from local lawmakers and officials as mental health demands rise while budgets threaten to hamper initiatives, the center brings stigma-fighting, personalized care to its clients, most of whom carry out full courses of treatment and report enjoying better lives as a result.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Dallas Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

By Mona Barbera, Ph.D., Internal Family Systems Therapy Topic Expert Contributor

Click here to contact Mona and/or see her GoodTherapy.org Profile

If you are in a multicultural marriage, you know how hard communication can be. Whether it’s about:

• in-laws – how much influence and involvement they have
• privacy – how many people are in your house on a daily basis or at special gatherings
• women’s roles
• conflict – hidden or overt ways of dealing with it
• being indirect/understated vs. being direct and expressive with requests, complaints
• accommodation to others vs. competition with them
• authority – who has it and who has to follow it
• showing affection/closeness – how much you need or show
• the individual’s needs and rights vs. the family/community
• being misunderstood or misunderstanding languages or gestures
• feeling neglected/feeling pressured
• male vs. female roles
• lack of knowledge/judgment of each other’s music, language, or culture
• loneliness/loss when you are living in the other person’s country

Multicultural relationships can be a great, rewarding adventure. Maybe you are the adventurous type, and you love contact with another culture. Or maybe you were surprised when you found yourself committed to someone from another culture. Love happens! Read the rest of this entry

Written by Alethea Smith-Withers, M.Div., D.Min.

Some years ago, I performed a wedding ceremony for a young African-American man and woman.  They are a striking couple.  The man, James, is an attorney and the woman, Ria, is a nurse practitioner.  They are ambitious, well-educated and dynamic young adults.  They like to travel and both are runners and have done a marathon together.  During pre-marital counseling, they shared that they wanted to wait for at least two years before they had children.  Both James and Ria seemed happy with their decision.  James was pleased because he said that he wanted to buy a house before they had children.  Ria expressed relief about not having children and she talked about needing time to develop professionally.  I sensed there was more that needed to be said and explored.  However, in the face of such seeming satisfaction, I initially thought there was little that I could add as the pastoral counselor.  I asked a few questions and somehow they shifted the focus to benign concerns about housekeeping responsibilities. They eventually married as planned.  But seven months later, they asked to see me for a few Couples Sessions.  They had heard that I had completed Imago Relationship training and were interested in experiencing the Imago, a unique approach to couples counseling.  During the first Couples Session, I introduced James and Ria to the Intentional Couples Dialogue and explained the three distinct steps and the gift that is a part of the process: Read the rest of this entry