“When your identity is misunderstood, care can feel like another fight to survive.”
July is National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. It’s more than a date; it’s a critical reminder that for many Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), the mental health journey is complex. This month highlights the need to be seen, heard, and find care that truly fits.
In 2008, Congress honored Bebe Moore Campbell, a writer and advocate who understood that stigma and silence were costing lives in communities of color. She co-founded NAMI-Inglewood, creating vital spaces where people could find mental healing without shame. She made minority mental health personal, a legacy we carry forward.
Why Minority Mental Health Isn’t Just a Talking Point Anymore
Let’s face the facts:
- Black youth suicide has jumped 78% in the last decade, yet they remain among the least likely to get support.
Source: Pew Charitable Trusts, 2024 - Native and Indigenous teens are 2.5 times more likely to die by suicide than White youth.
Source: Newport Academy, 2023 - Only one in three Black adults with a mental health condition receives treatment.
Source: RTOR – Resources to Recover, 2024 - LGBTQ+ youth of color face the highest rates of suicidal thoughts and attempts.
Source: Teen Vogue / The Trevor Project, 2023 - Most BIPOC adults still haven’t heard of 988—the mental health crisis line.
Source: Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), 2023
Across BIPOC groups, there’s often an unspoken rule: keep it together, don’t ask for help. No one should have to pretend they’re okay because the system makes asking for help harder.
What Gets In the Way of Healing
For many, the struggle for mental healing is structural:
- Fewer therapists of color means fewer who instantly understand your background.
- Insurance gaps, lack of local providers, or clinics that don’t feel safe are real barriers to mental health care for every minority group.
- Care often misses cultural context. When therapy ignores culture, people disengage—not from lack of desire, but because it doesn’t feel right for them.
Community Power: What’s Working and Growing
Across the country, communities are reclaiming care:
- BEAM trains everyday people like barbers and church leaders to support Black emotional wellness.
- The Loveland Foundation helps Black women and girls afford therapy with culturally reflective providers.
- Asian Mental Health Project, Therapy for Latinx, and NQTTCN are building communities where mental health care feels like home.
These are more than programs; they are lifelines. They show us that mental healing often begins right in the community, not just in clinics.
Where Insurance-Covered, Online Therapy Comes In
At Insight Therapy Solutions, we’ve seen how flawlessly virtual therapy meets people where they are. Additionally, online therapy has proved invaluable for minority mental health for a variety of reasons like:
- No need to drive or sit in an uncomfortable waiting room.
- Connect with a provider who truly understands your cultural background, or one who genuinely values and respects it.
- It often costs less, with many online therapy providers offering sliding scales. Nowadays, many platforms offer mental health sessions that are covered by insurance, so no more paying out-of-pocket.
Starting is often the hardest part. We make that easier.
What You Can Do This Month (and Beyond)
You don’t need a grand gesture to impact minority mental health. Just start real:
- Talk openly. Your voice helps break stigma.
- Share culturally aligned resources. Representation matters in mental health care.
- Support organizations doing the work. Whether it’s BEAM, Therapy for Black Girls, or NAMI-Inglewood, spread the word, volunteer, or donate to support their vital work in mental healing.
- Try online therapy and refer it to the ones you think might need it. Healing from couch is always a good place to start.
- Push for better policy. Advocate for schools, clinics, and workplaces to fund mental health care that truly reflects and serves everyone.
You Deserve to Feel Safe in Your Story
Everyone’s stories, struggles, and access to genuine mental health care and mental healing matter.
At Insight Therapy Solutions, we believe online therapy should feel like someone is really listening without judgment. By making it always virtual and covered by insurance, we’re helping more people get the support they need, no matter where they come from.
If you’re ready, we’re here. If not, we’ll still be here when you are! Reach out today for online therapy sessions, view our therapists, or book a free matchmaking call to help you match with the ideal therapist, saving you the hassle of searching yourself.
