MENTAL HEALTH

WEBSITES

• National Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.org/Home
• NAMI Coastal Virginia: https://www.namicoastalvirginia.org/
• SAMSHA (Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration): samhsa.gov
• National Suicide Prevention lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
• Community Resources List including free and reduced cost services, LGBTQ+ friendly services, homeless resources and more: https://www.namicoastalvirginia.org/community-resources
• NIMH: National Institute of Mental Health: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/
• Coping with COVID-19: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/get-involved/education-awareness/shareable-resources-on-coping-with-covid-19
• https://www.apa.org/pi/oema/resources/ethnicity-health/asian-american/article-mental-health
• Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities and Mental Health: https://www.mhanational.org/issues/asian-americanpacific-islander-communities-and-mental-health
• Asian American Psychological Association: https://aapaonline.org
• Positive effects of Mental Health projects in museums: https://www.museumnext.com/article/museums-joining-the-mental-health-conversation/
• AAM: How museums are addressing mental health issues/ the public is benefiting:
  https://www.aam-us.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/museums-on-call.pdf

STATISTICS

• 1/5 US adults experience mental illness, 1/20 experience serious mental illness, 17% of youth experience a mental health disorder
• The most prevalent mental illness is anxiety disorders at 19% of all US adults, followed by depression at 8%.
• Only 45% of adults with mental illness get treatment in a given year. By race/sexual orientation: 50% white, 49% LGBTQ, 43% mixed race adults, 34% Hispanic, 33% Black, and 23% Asian.
• 21% of people experiencing homelessness also have a serious mental illness.
• About 2 million people with serious mental illness are booked in jail per year, and 2/5 incarcerated people have a history of mental illness. 50,000 of these people are veterans.
• About 3/5 people with a history of mental illness do not receive treatment while incarcerated.
• Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people ages 10-34. The overall suicide rate has increased by 35% since 1999.
• The average delay of system onset and treatment is 11 years.
• Asian Americans have a 17% overall lifetime rate of any psychiatric disorder, and are 3x less likely to seek mental health services than white people. They are the least likely racial group in the US to take action on their mental health.
• According to one study, discussing mental health concerns is considered taboo in many Asian cultures and as a result many Asian Americans tend to dismiss, deny, or neglect their symptoms.
• Over 2.9 million Asian Americans struggled with mental illness in the past year.
• Anti-Asian attacks jumped to 3,800 incidents during COVID, including 50 in Virginia.

TERMS

• AAPI is Asian American and Pacific Islanders and encompasses a wide range of countries, ethnicities, nationalities, and identities.
• Dual diagnosis: having a mental health and alcohol or drug program simultaneously
• Comorbidity: the existence of two or more illnesses in the same person
• Early intervention: treating a mental illness when symptoms first arise
• Lists of diagnoses and terms: https://www.bestselfwny.org/resources/glossary-of-mental-health-terms/ ; https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/schizophrenia/raise/glossary

GET INVOLVED

• Stand Against Asian Hate: stopaapihate.org
  https://www.standagainsthatred.org/stories
• You Are Not Alone – partner packet for Mental Health Month: https://www.nami.org/getattachment/Get-Involved/Awareness-Events/Partners-and-Events/YANA2021-Partner-Guide.pdf

LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS

• Emergency Mental Health Services:
  Chesapeake: 757-548-7000
  Norfolk: 757-664-7690
  Portsmouth: 757-393-8990
  Suffolk/Isle of Wight: 757-925-2484
  Virginia Beach: 757-385-0888
  Eastern Shore: 757-442-7707
  Military and Veterans: 1-800-273-8255, press 1 or Text 838255
  TAPS 24/7 National Military Hotline: 1-800-959-TAPS (9277)
  Samaritan House: 757-631-0710, samaritanhouseva.org

• Asian American Resources in Virginia: https://richmond.com/news/local/heres-where-asian-communities-in-virginia-can-access-support-and-how-others-can-help/article_29a379ca-5a2b-5a39-8a0f-8f15cb7f7ee9.html

VIDEO + PODCASTS

We Need to Talk About Anti-Asian Hate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14WUuya94QE
Normalizing mental health treatment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWqvI9m-Ync
NPR Podcast, It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders, March 19, 2021, “A History of Anti-Asian Racism”: https://www.npr.org/2021/03/18/978616852/a-history-of-anti-asian-racism-plus-married-at-first-sight 
Cathy Lewis Hear Say, “Psychiatric Emergencies/Covid learning Loss,” April 26, 2021: http://www.hearsay.org/post/Psychiatric-Emergencies-COVID-19-Learning-Loss.aspx