“When I first got the blues, they brought me over on a ship,

Men was standin’ over me, and a lot more with a whip.

And ev’rybody wanna know why I sing the blues."

--B.B. King,

“Why I Sing the Blues”

Mental health is wealth, especially during Mental Health Awareness Month which is celebrated in May. The stigma around mental health and treatment has long existed even though this has started to change. Many people still hesitate to seek help or even talk about it with their loved ones for fear of being judged and facing unnecessary backlash. Logic would normally dictate that if we are hurt anywhere in our bodies, we must seek treatment to get better. This notion should apply to both our mental and physical well-being.

Anxiety has increased over the past two years of COVID-19 and the other variants as related to African Americans. General trauma, generational trauma, and racial stress are prominent mental health factors.

Aaren Snyder in her book ‘Black Mental Health Matters: The Ultimate Guide,’ provides that “One of the main reasons the rate of mental illness in African American communities is so high because there is a lack of awareness concerning the signs, symptoms, and treatment options available for people with mental disorders. We rely too often on ‘common sense’ to deal with serious emotional issues, which usually does not help at all. Common sense really isn’t all that common. Because if it were, more black people would be open to getting help.

We call upon our cousins, besties, and even our parents to help us through tough situations. But truthfully, our loved ones simply aren’t well equipped to deal with complex marital problems or severe mental disorders. The average person most likely doesn’t even know where to start. Besides, many don’t know the signs of a condition like depression or bipolar disorder. They may know what it feels like, but do they recognize the symptoms of mental illness when they see them? Can they describe them? Being able to do so is important when it comes to knowing when you or someone else needs help”

My father was diagnosed with schizophrenia before I was born and he spent many years in a mental hospital for treatment. His illness caused me a great deal of shame because of the stigma attached to mental illness at the time. All conversations about him were negative because no one in the family understood his mental illness. As a result, my father was erased from the family. But today I can speak about him with pride because without him I would not be here.

Mental illness is a disease like any other diagnosable illness. It is important that you recognize any symptoms that YOU may have or your loved ones around you. Depression is a silent epidemic among African American men. 

In the book “Standing In The Shadows", authored by John Head; he provides “In America, we have two mental health care systems, separate and unequal. You gain access to one by going in through the front door—the door for those with wealth or good health insurance. This system emphasizes early intervention in treating mental illnesses such as depression. It provides psychotherapy and medication as long as they are needed.

You get into the other system through the back door, and you are treated accordingly. This system is for those who are poor and/or among the nation’s 40 million uninsured. Most often, patients don’t enter this system until their illnesses have reached a serious stage. The usual points of entry include hospital emergency rooms, homeless shelters, jails, and prisons. If psychotherapy and medication are made available at all in this system, it is only for a limited time. The people who use the lower-tier mental health system look like America—they are men, women, and children from diverse racial, religious, and ethnic groups. But black men suffering from depression make up a disproportionate number of those who enter treatment through the back door.”

"Blues, blues, blues, why did you bring trouble to me?

Oh, Death, please sting me and take me out of my misery."

--Clearance Williams and Sara Martin

“Death Sting Me Blues”

John Head states, “Among African American men—and in the black community in general—the response to suicide is something beyond benign silence. Suicide is treated with outright hostility and denial. The strong religious taboo against the act is one of the reasons. To acknowledge that someone has killed himself is to adjudge him hell-bound. But more than spiritual considerations lead black men to rationalize suicide as a ‘white thing.’ The very idea that Africa American men would take their own lives is an affront to our people’s history and experiences in this country. How could we have in our blood and collective strengths that allowed blacks to survive three centuries of oppression, only to wind up killing ourselves? (Of course, this idea overlooks the role of suicide in the earliest stage of the slave experience, when Africans jumped to their deaths from the slave ships.)”

Mental health care is essential to living a balanced life, so finding the time to talk about it is important. If you need to talk about your mental health struggles with someone, make sure to carve out some time to do so. Identify a therapist with whom you are comfortable or contact the counselor for the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through your employer. Talk with your minister or the health and wellness ministry at your church.

NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION 1 (800) 273-8255

LIFELINE (Dial) 988

"All around me there’s a solid wall.

A wall of trouble and confusion, I don tired of it all.

I believe I believe I’ve been blue too long.''

--B.B. King and Dave Clark

“I Believe I’ve Been Blue Too Long”

This blog is dedicated in memory of the late Theodore Roosevelt Harrison

and the late Arthur Gerald Durham