How to Care for Your Mental Health as ICE Raids Continue

By Ricky Rodas

Growing up in Southern California in the 90s, Mary Lu experienced firsthand how challenging it was for immigrant families like hers to access therapy and support.

“I really wanted to help families like mine increase their access to mental health resources and lower barriers to help and stigmas like financial strain or language access,” Lu said.

Now a clinical therapist and program director for Project HOPE, a free youth counseling program run by the Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance, Lu is watching federal policy changes and noticing the impacts on the communities she serves.

As the federal government continues Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Southern California and across the country, mental health professionals like Lu are seeing a heightened need for their services, as they work to help clients cope with stress, anxiety and loss of normalcy.

The situation is difficult for some immigrant families, as they face the daily possibility that they or their loved ones may be suddenly deported or held in detention, but there are mental health resources available for undocumented Californians that may help, therapists said. Mental health professionals interviewed for this story also said there are ways to help address the anxiety, fear and depression they are seeing because of the raids.

President Donald Trump said on inauguration day that he would uphold a campaign promise to deport all undocumented residents. In early July, ICE agents were deployed to the metropolitan Los Angeles area, sparking a week of protests downtown. Since then, the federal government says it has placed over 59,000 migrants in detention facilities as of August, according to NBC News’ deportation tracker. More than 120,000 people were deported nationwide between January and May this year, according to a Marshall Project analysis of ICE data obtained by the Deportation Data Project. The analysis showed that two-thirds of the people deported had no criminal convictions.

Filtering information

Cindy Garcia, a program supervisor for Amanecer Community Counseling Service in downtown L.A., said her organization regularly helps clients process anxiety, fear and depression. The nonprofit provides trauma-informed and holistic counseling services to low-income communities around Los Angeles, primarily serving Latinx immigrant households.

“In the past few months, there has been an increase in our community expressing fear of deportation, fear of detention,” Garcia said, “and a lot of anxiety associated with what’s happening in the present, but also anxiety and fear with what’s to come.”

After the protests and increased ICE presence in downtown L.A., Amanecer staff adapted their services and care model. Clinical therapists are conducting more telehealth sessions and are also informing clients of their legal rights. Marilin Lourokis, director for legal programs at Amanecer, said that they are connecting clients to nonprofit organizations who conduct “know your rights” trainings, and are also developing emergency plans with clients.

Amanecer is advising clients to filter the amount of information they’re absorbing about deportations and detainments. “ It is important to be informed,” Lourokis said, “but how much are you exposing yourself to that anxiety-provoking information? We encourage clients to limit exposure and also talk about resources that are available.”

The Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance has also worked to adapt its services to fit its clients’ needs this year. Clinicians have noticed the impact of the immigration policies. “I had been hearing from my clinicians that clients kind of withdrew from friends from having fun times outside going out of the house,” Lu said.

As a result, the nonprofit is offering telehealth services and has red “know your rights” cards available at its main office. Lu said she is also considering her clinical staff’s well-being and taking preventative measures. “A lot of staff are AAPI [Asian American and Pacific Islander], and the AAPI community was also impacted by the shifts,” Lu said. “ We created a community check-in where staff were able to come in during the workday and process a little bit of what was going on for them.”

Both nonprofits offer free or low-cost therapy. Project HOPE’s counseling program is a free option for young people looking for mental health support. The organization has other counseling programs for people of all ages, such as Project RISE, and individual and family counseling. The nonprofit also runs a holistic services program for Vietnamese elders over the age of 60 who are experiencing loneliness and depression. A full list of the Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance mental health programs is available here.. 

Amanecer offers a variety of paid services and accepts medical insurance. These services include trauma-informed and holistic counseling, as well as access to a trauma recovery center and a domestic violence clinic. The organization also has a new mobile immigration program which offers free case management and legal support. “These services oftentimes serve as a bridge to formal mental health services,” Garcia, Amanecer’s program supervisor, said. A list of Amanecer programs is available here.

Guidance on taking care of mental well-being

Clinicians shared several tips on how to process emotions during stressful events such as deportations, raids and detainments.

The first step, Lourokis said, is to be open to sharing. Therapists aim to create an environment where people feel relaxed enough to open up. “It is very common for families to avoid discussing the topic of deportation due to a cultural belief that if they bring the subject up, it could bring bad luck and so fear becomes reality,” Lourokis said. “The first thing we do is provide them with peace of mind.”

A common strategy for processing anxiety and fear is to practice grounding exercises. These can include deep breathing, tuning into one’s surroundings, deep stretches, repeating positive affirmations and more. Part of why grounding exercises are important, Lu said, is that they can give a sense of comfort to someone who is feeling unsafe.

“When people despair, or get anxious, they tend to stop themselves from interacting with others, so we try to help ground them,” Lu said.

The next step for a clinical therapist working with a client is devising a safety plan that fits their personal mental health needs. There are online resources like My Safety Plan that provide templates on how to create one.

One tip for coping with these uncertain times is practicing what Lu referred to as radical joy. By embracing moments of joy during uncomfortable and discouraging moments, she said people can still have fun while processing other emotions.

“This is not a joyful moment — there is a lot to be concerned about — but in some ways, joy is resistance,” Lu said. “And being able to enjoy parts of your life can bring you a lot of comfort, joy and community.”

In some cases, overwhelming fear, anxiety and stress can lead to depression. For clients experiencing depression, Lu does recommend grounding exercises but recognizes that “depression is more nuanced,” she said. One step toward addressing depression is identifying the root causes behind those negative feelings. Sometimes, Lu said, it’s normal to feel hopeless depending on the situation.

“Sometimes you look at [a person’s case] and say, ‘You’re completely right, I see why you think that way,’” Lu said. “We provide empathy in the moments, validation that it is hard, and then come up with a support plan on how we can get you to the first step, even if the first step is getting you to take off the blanket and get up [out of bed].”

Mental Health Resources:

• Latinx Therapy directory
• Immigrant Rising’s list of BIPOC and LGBTQ+ mental health directories and hotlines
• Asian Mental Health Collective therapist directory
• UndocuHealth mental health directory
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Call or Text 988. Multiple language services
• available
• National Alliance on Mental Health: Call 1 (800) 950-6264 or Text NAMI to 741741
• BIPOC Blackline mental health hotline: 1 (800) 604-5841
• Immigant Rising’s Mental Health Connector for undocumented students
• UCLA Labor Center’s Immigrant Justice California Health Resource Guide 

This article first appeared on California Health Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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Previously Published on calhealthreport.org with Creative Commons License

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