Mental Health in AANHPI Communities
I’ve always called adults “Auntie” or “Uncle” out of respect, even if I wasn’t related to them. Asian communities are united by a shared sense of family, with honorary titles signifying more than just respect, but also trust, closeness, and love. Within such tight knit groups, the health and wellbeing of one can ripple throughout, affecting other members. While Asian families are quick to help and tend to loved ones facing physical injuries, mental health struggles are often neglected. This discrepancy is likely due to many factors, including lack of awareness and persistent stigma. Mental health struggles have traditionally been characterized as personal weaknesses in Asian communities, creating an unaccepting environment that can hinder seeking professional care. As a result, Asians who are struggling with mental health may receive delayed counseling and treatment.
As a Youth Mental Health Ambassador for Thriving Asians, I work to bring mental health awareness to my own community in Central Florida. By organizing local workshops, Youth Mental Health Ambassadors help the Asian community recognize the importance of mental health and encourage them to share this awareness with their friends and families. We also create spaces where Asian youth can share their own ideas for supporting mental health. While on a meeting with the Thriving Asians team, I learned the devastating fact that the leading cause of death among Asian Americans from ages 15-24 is suicide. After hearing this statistic, I knew something had to be done to bridge the gap between mental health resources and all AAPI communities.
In early March, I held my very own Thriving Asians Workshop titled “Redefining Mental Health: A Foundation for Success for AANHPI Young Leaders” in my school’s Asian Student Union. I first started off by giving everyone a pre test to fill out their current knowledge of the topic. Unsurprisingly, many of the students were unfamiliar with Asian mental health topics. I proceeded to give the presentation and made it fun and interactive at the same time. There were sticky notes and discussion boards that helped bring different ideas all together. After the workshop, I sent out a post test so that people could reevaluate their knowledge on Asian mental health, and the results were amazing. Every respondent expressed in both quantitative and qualitative data that they felt more comfortable discussing mental health with peers, friends, and even family. My first Thriving Asians workshop was a success to say the least.
This summer, I attended the Stanford CARE Explorers: AI X Precision Health High School Program. I learned about how AI can positively impact the understanding of mental health in Asian communities. Through the Stanford CARE Explorer’s program, I found how to use AI and machine learning to expand our program’s impact and improve Asian mental health awareness. For example, I could create an App that connects Thriving Asian community members with mental health resources. By integrating machine learning such as Natural Language Programming, which has been shown to be extremely efficient in monitoring patients’ wellbeing through chats and texts in the app, we could introduce mental wellness concepts in a positive and supportive way. The ability of AI to process and analyze vast amounts of data, coupled with its capacity to interact with individuals, offers promising prospects for creating impactful awareness campaigns aimed at individuals as well as communities. I hope to learn to harness these and other strengths of AI to improve the mental health of others.
Central Florida is home to a robust and diverse Asian population. Having adequate mental health care for all youth is essential to ensuring the wellbeing of the entire community.. Through bridging AI and Asian mental health, we can help ensure that Asian communities all across the nation receive the adequate care and treatment they deserve so that everyone may grow and thrive.
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