Breaking Down Barriers During Mental Health Awareness Month

May was Mental Health Awareness Month, and La Familia Counseling Center in Sacramento seeks to break down barriers around mental health, speaking openly about it and offering help to those who suffer from this invisible condition, which affects thousands of people each year regardless of race, gender or age.

Mental illness is a common health condition. Approximately 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 6 children will experience a diagnosable mental health condition during their lifetime. In Sacramento County, more than 300,000 people are living with mental illness.

The Hispanic/Latino community in California faces a disproportionately high rate of suffering from mental health conditions and they face additional immense barriers that prevent approximately 66% of Hispanic/Latino adults from seeking help and receiving adequate treatment for mental illness.

La Familia Counseling Center seeks to address the barriers that prevent community members from getting services for Mental Health illnesses by understanding how and why these barriers are created and working to eliminate them and the stigma of getting help.

LATINOS –BARRIERS TO WELLNESS
Latinos are less likely to seek psychiatric counseling or treatment for their mental health due to various barriers like the cultural stigma, language gap, poverty, legal status, socioeconomic status, and lack of cultural competency – all of which can affect the accessibility and quality of mental health services.

• LACK OF INFORMATION

The Latino community doesn't talk about mental health issues. There is little information about it. Many Latinos don't seek treatment because they don't recognize the symptoms or don't know where to find help.

• LANGUAGE BARRIERS

Not speaking the same language as health specialists can cause difficulties when communicating with doctors. .

• LACK OF HEALTH INSURANCE

The Latino community represents a third (⅓) of the population that does not have health insurance coverage.

• MIGRATORY STATUS

For immigrants who arrive without documentation, the trauma they have experienced and the fear of deportation can cause anxiety but also prevent them from seeking help.

• CULTURAL STIGMA

Many Latinos do not seek help or treatment for fear of being labeled “crazy” or causing shame to their family.

The Family Counseling Center has professional staff that provide culturally and linguistically competent therapeutic services. They offer Children’s Behavioral Health services to MediCal eligible youth 0-21. Services are provided through home visits, in schools, at La Familia's Maple Neighborhood Center, or other locations as needed.

In addition to the Children’s Flexible and Integrated Treatment Program they offer other programs and services to specifically help Latinos. Some of these programs include:

• SUPPORTING COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS (SCC): This program is a Suicide Prevention program for Latinos with resources for suicide prevention, intervention training, support groups, risk awareness workshops, and senior companion groups/events.

• CENTRO APOYO LATINO- CAL (LATINO SUPPORT CENTER): This program is for primarily Spanish-speaking Latino adults of all ages. CAL provides short-term crisis intervention services along with navigation to long-term solutions. CAL provides personalized navigation, support groups, and various community resources.

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La Familia Counseling Center offers many other programs and services including Youth Programs, a Career Center, Parenting Classes, a Family Resource Center, Preventive Health Education, COVID services and programs for Seniors. La Familia seeks to reach more and more people who need support, but who are unaware of the resources available to them. Through our personalized mental health services and other programs, we believe we have made a positive impact on the Hispanic/Latino communities in and around our region.