When I entered the mental health field - I was naive. I really thought that based on my family history, there had to be a huge need for mental health practitioners who worked with men and women of color in the U.S.

I mean I could think of a five people off-hand who suffered from depression in my family, but were receiving zero treatment. I thought it must be a matter of money. Maybe most people of color such as African-Americans, Hispanics, and Asians didn't have the disposable income for talk therapy and antidepressants?

Well that may be only part of the story - and a very small part. Because it seems the more prevalent issue is the fact that members of all three of these minority groups have a different attitude about being given a depression diagnosis than their white counterparts.

In a recent U.S. study conducted by Dr. Jane Givens and her colleagues of Boston University Medical Center, African-Americans, Hispanics, and Asians are skeptical of the biological basis of depression and are fearful of becoming addicted to antidepressants.


The study which surveyed 78,753 people was published in The Journal of General Hospital Psychiatry and revealed that over 65% of those surveyed would be worried about their employers finding out about their diagnosis as well as with friends and family.

Having been raised in my African-American family, as well as having worked with many Hispanic and Asian clients in the New York City area - I can definitely attest to the validity of this study. Many minorities feel a great deal of pressure to work twice as hard and be perfect in order to compete or at least maintain their status in the workplace etc.

Mental disorders are viewed as a huge weakness by many people in these communities - and many don't believe that depression is a real mental disorder. Depression has been so rampant in these communities over generations - that to most it is just viewed as "the blues". Something that one has to find the strength to fight without use of crutches such as drugs or therapy.

But times have changed. And a great many of us have the health benefits, disposable income, and privacy laws on our side to seek the mental health care that we must. And finally, we now have the knowledge that perhaps everything our grandmothers thought about "the blues" isn't necessarily today's truth.

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Lisa Angelettie, "GirlShrink" is an online advice authority. Her site GirlShrink.com is the #1 "Advice & Counseling" site on the web and contributing author of "101 Great Ways To Improve Your Life". Instantly get a FREE Bonus when you sign up for her free Better Choices Ezine. Please visit us for more discussion on this topic in the depression forum to talk about it further. Don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter for topics in the news, new articles, website & book reviews, and other useful mental health resources. Subscribe below.