Advancing Asian Mental Health

Advancing Asian Mental Health is an interview series that features individuals and organizations who are striving to make a difference among Asian communities around the world. From organizations to artists, these are people who are trying to pave the way for the acceptance and normalization of Asian mental health issues.

Image of Sharlene Justo (she/they/he), APCC.

Being Seen: On Love Beyond the Binary, Community Care, and Becoming Our Truest Selves

Meet Sharlene Justo. Sharlene Justo is a queer Khmer-Filipinx gender fluid Associate therapist at Alvarado Family Therapy (San Diego, CA) and Lecturer at San Diego State University. She has a spectrum of experiences working with K-12 schools, community mental health, and transitional age youth. As a first generation student and child of refugees/immigrants, she holds a kaleidoscope perspective for clients to feel radically seen and empowered to trailblaze pathways that honor their authentic selves. Read more about Sharlene's background, experiences, and philiosophies they bring to their work as an Associate Therapist.

Continue reading

How We Talk To Ourselves Matters

While hunkering down during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Chicago-based professional translated her experiences into a mini-guide entitled How We Talk To Ourselves. She collaborated with New York City-based artist Connie Van on the book.

Continue reading

The Value of Lived Experiences

This month, we chat with the ladies behind The Desi Condition, a podcast centered on mental wellness and Desi culture, as well as Mental Health Talks India, an online repository of stories about mental health. Both outfits seek to create spaces where people can vent and share without fear or shame. Check them out – their DMs are open!

Continue reading

Documenting Depression in Words and Illustrations

Mak’s journey with depression has been ongoing for several years now. After a stint at Singapore’s Institute of Mental Health in 2017, he decided to document that episode of struggling with depression in a blog. “It is my hope that the blog will help others who either know someone in depression, or is suffering from depression themselves,” he writes on the blog.

Continue reading
Asian Mental Health Collective