I Advocate For Mental Health Help

My outlook on therapy has changed since being in therapy on-and-off, thus why I advocate for mental health help rather than therapy (although, therapy is included in mental health help).

Everyone can benefit from mental health help because we all have mental health. Some may require it long-term, while others may require it periodically (or, rarely). Some may choose therapy, while others may choose alternative therapeutic options.

My intention is to share my experiences with therapy and how my views shape how I talk about it, especially within the Black community.

I would like to disclose that I am not a mental health professional — I’m providing you with an alternative perspective.

Navigating therapy as a Black woman has been challenging and stressful — It has caused more harm than help. Sometimes, I wonder if I would have been better off seeking alternative therapeutic options, instead of therapy itself. Now, I have to unpack trauma that I have endured over the years of on-and-off therapy before I can get into what led me to therapy in the first place.

Years ago, I created a Facebook group to bring an awareness to the potential harmful impacts of navigating therapy as a Black woman. Therapy is White-Centered (not created with Black women in mind).

In the Black community, people often suffer with their mental health in silence. I cannot advocate for therapy when I, myself have yet to get the proper help. However, I can advocate for mental health help, which includes therapy.

If you’re considering therapy, keep in mind that you will need to ensure that your therapist is a fit — This may be a life-long journey. If you find that your therapist isn’t a fit, asked to be referred to another therapist that fits XYZ. For instance, I’ve requested (numerous times), a therapist that’s culturally competent and trauma informed. To my dismay, I’ve come to realize that’s more subjective. Being trauma informed is not the same as specializing in trauma.

In therapy, I’ve spent more time educating mental health professionals on their racial and gender biases than getting the help that I deserve.

Due to my unfortunate experiences in therapy, I have become my own expert — It’s up to me to advocate for myself in therapy, if I want any progress.

There may come a time when I stop seeking therapy and you should too if it becomes more harmful than helpful. Make sure you have an alternative therapeutic option in place though!

If you want to support my writing, you can ‘tip’ me. Thanks in advance.✨