Week 8: Kyrene Giezl Gutierrez - A01

Week 8’s readings focused on Faith, Sexuality, and Mental Health. Those of which are commonly known as Taboo topics within the Asian American community. As I was going through the readings, I thought that the article from The Mind Unleashed, titled “What a Shaman Sees in a Mental Hospital,” was really interesting, because it gave a VERY different perspective on mental disorders. The shamanic view looks at mental disorders as “the birth of a healer” (Marohn, 2014). This differs from the Western view of mental illness, which is seen as a deformity and indicates an individual is not normal, so they must be medicated and held captive from the rest of the world. In the article, Dr. Some shared her experience when visiting a mental hospital, stating “So this is how the healers who are attempting to be born are treated in this culture. What a loss! What a loss that a person who is finally being aligned with a power from the other world is just being wasted” (Marohn, 2014). It’s interesting to read about how other cultures embrace the idea of mental illness and looks at it as a good thing, yet in America, those with mental illnesses are forced to take medications and be held in mental asylums, which to me, is more harmful than the illness itself. When the article talked about energies and how these energies just want to become one with the host, I immediately thought about the Filipino culture and their concept of Kapwa, which means shared identity. Kapwa is being one with yourself, others, spirits/ancestors, and land. Beliefs like Kapwa and the indigenous practices of healing stemming from the concept was erased due to colonization from both Spain and America. I believe that the erasure of indigenous practices of healing is a contributing factor as to why mental illness such a taboo topic in the Asian American community. Older generations are so drawn to think that mental illnesses do not exist and the younger generations don’t talk about their mental illness or take medications because that’s what is considered normal. We are so immersed in the American culture, which is probably why this article was such a fascinating read. I definitely think that individuals who have a mental illness shouldn’t look at themselves as “crazy” or  “abnormal,” just because the dominant culture labels them as one. Although some may think that their mental illness weakens them, I know for sure it is what makes them stronger than others.

Question: How can we destigmatize mental illnesses within our Asian American community? Why don’t we approach/treat mental illnesses with the same sense of urgency and importance as a physical illness?

Resources:

Buzzfeed Comics (2015, December 11). ‘Physical Illness vs. Mental Illness’ [Cartoon]. Buzzfeed Health. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/BuzzFeedHealth/photos/physical-illness-vs-mental-illness-buzzfeed-comics/1070817209637561/

Marohn, S. (2014, August). What a Shaman Sees in a Mental Hospital. The Mind Unleashed. Retrieved from https://themindunleashed.com/2014/08/shaman-sees-mental-hospital.html