Schizophrenia in the Black Community When I first started working in mental health, I must admit, Schizophrenia was the area I had the least experience in.  I recall one of my first client’s with schizophrenia, Jack (fictitious name for the purpose of this blog).  Jack was a Black man in his late 30s with a college degree; he was an active member in his church and worked at the local grocery store stocking shelves.  When I met him the first time I remember thinking, “there is nothing wrong with this guy.”  However, that quickly changed once he decided that he … Continue reading Schizophrenia in the Black Community

  Mental Health in the Black Community… For many years I have heard people in the Black community pass judgment on others by using terms like, “crazy” or “touched”, to identify those that may suffer from mental illness.  This history of ignorance has created a huge stigma in our community.  The fact is, many Blacks do not believe or acknowledge mental illness as true medical condition. When it comes to problems? Just pray.  Well that is one way to look at how God works, but another way to look at it is through the Spanish proverb, “Pray to God, but … Continue reading Mental Health in the Black Community…

  When I first got out of graduate school I felt like I knew exactly what I wanted to do;  I was going to give everyone all the knowledge I had acquired in the hope that this would help heal their pain.  Sounds good right, but try to translate that into an actual job.  Well I did, I became a therapist and worked as a mental health family support specialist.  I got the opportunity to work with the families of people suffering from a mental illness and provide an educational 12-week series on mental illness.  Now years later, I still … Continue reading Mental Illness Awareness Week Oct 7-13, 2012