Feel free to rant about your own struggles.
As for me:
I’m currently dealing with depression and I’m still, unfortunately, dependent on my parents, and I can’t ever get them to understand me.
“Finding professional help” is also difficult here in the US…
I don’t think being here really helped my parent’s understand, they still distrust the concept ofnpsychaitry and claims that "the family has no historu of these issues. And brushes off my of my problems. So…
Ugh…
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My father has no idea what mental health is about and says a lot of insensitive and crass things whenever news about suicide comes up. It can be really jarring and hard to listen to for me personally.
But I try my best to sympathize and try to think about the environment he grew up in (Vietnam War and all). I’ve come to terms that I will never get support from him on this topic. Maybe some day things can change, but it would take a lot of work.
Hopefully you are able to find something to help as mental health is so important. Take care of yourself.
It’s true that every family is unique, but I’ve noticed that in many Chinese families especially among older generations, mental health struggles are often brushed off as just “personality quirks” or even weaknesses.
If your parents have spent time in western cultures, their views might be more open-minded, but it sounds like they still hold onto some traditional beliefs. That can make things even harder when you’re trying to talk about what you’re going through.
Have you looked into local support groups or communities where you can connect with others who understand what you’re experiencing? Sometimes, just knowing you’re not alone and having a safe space to share can make a difference.
I think they tend to sweep mental illness under the rug because it’s seen as an embarrassment or weakness. It’s a lack of awareness from the older generation. And in my experience as a healthcare worker, I’ve noticed when Asian patients do come in for mental health reasons, they are on average very sick. As in, they seem to wait to meet a higher threshold before reaching out for help. By then it’s a full blown crisis.
I don’t really struggle with mental health myself. Well I think I have ADHD symptoms (like zoning out, foot-tapping, interrupting people) and am prone to forgetfulness and anxiety, but I can deal with it.
But yeah, my communication with my parents is shit lol. They weren’t very good at being supportive on a deeper level and so today, it is what it is. Let’s say I ended up needing to get professional help, honestly I’d continue to keep things to myself. We just don’t have that kind of relationship.
