Among women, Asian Americans have some of the highest rates of suicide in the nation. A professor who has been studying suicide since her own sister took her life links it and other mental health problems to model minority identity pressures.
Parents and guardians put pressure (model minority) on their children to be high achievers and when the children are not able to meet with the desired expectations, they tend to give way to depression and hence to suicide.
Expatiating further, Noh said,
In my study, the model minority pressure is a huge factor. Sometimes it’s very overt — parents say, ‘You must choose this major or this type of job’ or ‘You should not bring home As and Bs, only As. And girls have to be the perfect mother and daughter and wife as well.
Noh is an assistant professor of Asian-American studies at California State University at Fullerton. Nearly, seven years back, she lost her sister because of depression, who later committed suicide. Moved by that tragedy, she decided to spend her professional life studying depression and suicide among Asian-American women.
She asserted that depression starts even younger than the age of fifteen.
Gender-specific cultural expectations
Another scholar, Dr. Dung Ngo, a psychologist at Baylor University in Texas, postulated that family pressure affects girls more than boys. ‘When I go talk to high school students and ask them if they experience pressure, the majority who raised their hands were the girls,’ he said.
There are gender-specific cultural expectations. A woman has a very particular role in the family. There is the pressure to marry and have children, yet at the same time, balance the family with a successful career. Asian American women in domestic violence situations face an even heavier burden.
1. Conflicting cultural values are impacting Asian American women’s sense of control over their life decisions.
2. Feeling responsible, yet unable, to meet biased and unrealistic standards set by families and society contribute to low self-esteem among Asian American women.
3. Asian American women are witnessing depression in their families and learning from Asian cultures to maintain its silence.
4. Asian American women fear stigma for themselves, but more so for their families.
Treatment Barriers
Asian American women also face barriers to treatment. Cultural customs and stereotypes can limit access to proper healthcare. Without treatment or counseling, the depressed Asian American suffers even more in silence.
Certain Asian values emphasize internalizing problems, restraining strong emotions, and conforming to social norms. ‘Deviating from the norms by admitting psychological problems can be easily perceived as a violation of Asian cultural values, resulting in shame to the family,’ say Kim and Omizo. Problems must therefore be kept secret and private. The social stigma associated with mental illness deters treatment-seeking even more.
Bottom line
Depression is a malady which may cause the most serious repercussions hence it must to be cured at the initial stages itself. Although there are various medications but one must not be totally dependent on those. Counseling is the only long term solution for the problem.
At times, what happens as Noh has said that the women feels, counselors are no good as they are not able to understand their situation, rather these women found help through their religious faith, herbs, acupuncture, or becoming involved in groups that help other Asian women.
Hence, instead of bottling up of emotions, it’s better to give vent to the feelings and must seek out help from either of the agencies.
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