Mental Health Among Asian American Youth by Olivia Yun (17, Massachusetts)

In today’s progressive climate, mental health is increasingly emerging as a prevalent issue among America’s youth. Now more than ever, teenagers are encouraged to express their emotions regularly and are finding mental health care and support at an exceptional rate.

​That is, white teenagers are. Minority groups, specifically Asian Americans, are three less times as likely to seek mental health services than white Americans according to the National Latino and Asian American Study.  

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Why? Because in your typical Asian American household, poor mental health is a sign of shame. A “bad day” is instinctively blamed on sloth rather than any possibility of struggle. Anything less than a stellar appearance is unacceptable. 
    
The reasons for this can trace back to ancient history, such as the values of Confucianism that emphasize communal social harmony. Furthermore, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and Japanese internment camps post-WWII created a precedent of ostracizing Asian Americans from mainstream American society. This social exile birthed the notion of Asian Americans feeling like outsiders and compromising oneself to fit in. 

An American Psychological Association Study indicates another reason may be pressure to fulfill the “model minority” stereotype millions of Asian Americans face today. Others blame this issue on the “tiger parent” archetype that has manifested among Asian parents. 
    
It was only until I was put into the hospital in 2019 that my Korean-American parents acknowledged my depression. Even today they constantly struggle to accept my mental illness: I begged them to start antidepressants, and whenever they caught me crying, they would only ask me, “who saw you?” 
    
A study in 2003 found that 72% of Asian/Pacific Islander at-risk youth had unmet mental health needs versus 31% of Non-Hispanic Whites. Thousands of youth are suffering an epidemic of silent mental illnesses because of robust cultural values.

Mental health services should be aware of and seek to target this issue, but the work starts at the beginning; as America’s healthcare is waking up to the unmet emotional needs of its people, so should the Asian community. Neglect of mental health is only an avoidance of emotional reality. 

According to Mental Health America, most youth Asian Americans “tend to seek out support from personal networks such as close friends, family members, and religious community members rather than seek professional help for their mental health concerns”. Creating an environment more expressive of feelings is vital to providing mental healthcare access for Asian American youth. This means untangling and slowly unlearning our detrimental habits, whether they are a result of outdated culture or racism. 

Not only will Asian American youth feel more accepted of their mental health, they will be incentivized to seek professional help. With the combination of professional health services and at-home communal support, Asian Americans can receive the same mental health care as their white counterparts. 

There are a plethora of obstacles the model minority of America faces, but mental healthcare disparity can not be one of them. Through changes within our community, the Asian Americans can slowly work towards building a brighter future for our youth.

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