As mental health professionals, we can promote greater understanding and compassion of the unique challenges immigrants and their children face.

Immigrants encounter many challenges, including discrimination, language difficulties, and lower access to healthcare, among many others. There is also the added challenge of isolation from the larger national community. Many immigrant families live within or very close to their immigrant community, which may reinforce a sense of separation from the dominant culture.
 
Coping with these challenges can lead to mental health issues, particularly for those with a pre-existing biological vulnerability to a mental illness. 

In some immigrant communities, mental health concerns are actively ignored and people are discouraged from seeking help. Their reluctance is often due to lack of resources, but also due to stigma. Some cultures have alternative treatment approaches to mental health care, such as herbal remedies or spiritual practices. For example, some communities use culturally rooted practices of mindfulness and meditations or religious practices such as prayer.

 As mental health professionals, we can promote greater understanding and compassion of the unique challenges immigrants and their children face. It is indisputable that immigrants make tremendous contributions to this country, and they—and their mental health—should be acknowledged, respected and valued.