TULSA, Okla — Guests gathered at Tulsa’s University of Oklahoma campus to talk about challenges and stigmas the Black and African American community face when it comes to mental health.
According to the CDC, suicide rates among Black and African Americans nationwide have increased each year between 2018 and 2023, jumping from 3,022 to 3,911 in that time period.
WATCH: FREEDOM TO SHOUT: Community gathers to discuss improvements to mental health:
FREEDOM TO SHOUT: Community gathers to discuss improvements to mental health
Seeing data like this, Psychiatrist Dr. Brittany Taylor wanted to do something about it.
It’s why she organized the Freedom to Shout workshop that aims to combine the power of religion, spirituality and community to help with mental health.
“I’m going to educate people about how I formulate or assess patients through the biological the social and psychological lenses,” she said. “While also incorporating spirituality like scriptures, as well as helping people understand that it’s multi-factorial.”
Taylor said there are several things contributing to poorer mental health in these communities.
She explains one of them is courtesy stigma.
“Stigma within their own community and family that’s preventing them from wanting to get help,” she said. “Preventing them from believing that they can go to whether a psychiatrist, a therapist, or even just talk to someone about the struggle that they’re having with their emotions or their mental health. It’s pretty bad.”
Fellow psychiatrist and guest Dr. Nicole Washington said she wanted to learn more.
“I’m most looking forward to hearing the input from the community,” said Washington. “I want to hear from the faith community about what gaps they see as far as it relates to their interconnection with the medical side of things. So I’m looking forward to that. I’m also looking forward to just seeing people learn more about mental illness.”
Dr. Washington said it was a “no-brainer” to attend the event and support Dr. Taylor’s mission.
“I think it’s just important to remember that people are whole beings, and you cannot separate your spirituality from your physical health from your mental health,” said Washington. “It’s all in one casing, and it’s important to nurture every aspect of it.”
Taylor echoed the sentiment.
“The only way that we really can address this crisis by connecting and becoming a community and just understand, once we connect and talk, things can change,” said Dr. Taylor. “When we continue to keep things secret and under the rug, people don’t heal. So this is what freedom to shout is. It’s time to shout.”
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