From systemic racism and the stress and economic inequities it creates, to workplace microaggressions, to blatant police brutality, the Black community in the United States has always had to prioritize survival, both physically and mentally. Yet, while healthcare is a basic and ongoing necessity, many African Americans have learned to distrust the U.S. health system because history has shown them how often Black bodies have been exploited, experimented on, neglected and harmed under the banner of medical treatment and research.

SHIFTING ATTITUDES

Yet recent years have given rise to a massive uptick in conversations and resources supporting mental health in the Black community, in part driven by Black celebrities who have been impacted by mental health challenges in their own lives. In 2018, Oscar-nominated film and stage actor Taraji P. Henson launched the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation (BLHF), named after her late father, who struggled with untreated PTSD and bipolar disorder after serving as a Marine in the Vietnam War. Henson has spoken publicly about her own struggles with anxiety and depression and has tasked BLHF with the goal of “eradicating the mental health stigma in BIPOC communities.” Her organization partners with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) as well as middle and high schools to offer programming that includes movement, breathwork, journaling and sound therapy.

In 2022, radio and TV personality Charlamagne tha God founded the Mental Wealth Alliance based on three pillars of programming: destigmatizing mental health in Black communities (teach), expanding the delivery of culturally competent mental health services (treat), and growing the pool of Black mental health practitioners (train). Charlamagne wrote about his healing from trauma, anxiety and depression in his 2018 book, Shook One, in which he asks, “If you go to the gym three or four times a week, why can’t you put that same effort and energy into getting mentally strong?”

That same year, superstar rapper and entrepreneur Megan Thee Stallion launched BadBitchesHaveBadDaysToo.com, using the title of one of her hit songs as both the website name and a rallying cry. Reclaiming a word historically used to demean women, her website offers a rich wellness portal with resources for finding therapists, suicide prevention, substance abuse and specialized support for the Black and LGBTQ+ community. Megan lost her father to a heart attack at age 15 and her mother to a brain tumor in 2019, when she was only 24. The year after her mother’s death was not only cloaked in the panic of the COVID-19 crisis, it was also the same year she was shot in the foot and endured a highly publicized trial and social media scrutiny. She shares her story in the 2024 documentary, Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words.

Other pivotal moments of mental health awareness in the Black community were defined by female athletes. In 2021, 23-year-old tennis sensation Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open after being fined for missing a press appearance, citing her ongoing struggle with anxiety, depression and burnout. In her essay for Time magazine, “It’s O.K. Not To Be O.K.,” she recommended that players be allowed a small number of “sick days” per year. Her stand prompted the four Grand Slam organizations to address press conference mandates and restructure the way players are interviewed after matches.

That same year, Simone Biles withdrew from all events in the Tokyo Olympics except the balance beam, citing “twisties” – a lapse in mid-air spatial awareness often triggered by stress. By Paris 2024, she won three gold medals, proving that breaks for mental health can support long-term success. Her decision produced significant changes in the athletic community. Governing bodies, including USA Gymnastics, began offering on-site therapists at competitions, and the NBA and NFL initiated broader conversations and resources.

In April, less than a month after an on-stage health scare left Megan Thee Stallion briefly hospitalized from exhaustion, and just one day after announcing her breakup from her NBA player boyfriend on Instagram, she ended her Broadway run in Moulin Rouge! The Musical early. She called it a “wake-up call.”

As high-profile Black celebrities “wake up” to self-compassion, wellness and self-care in greater numbers, they are leading the way for others in the Black community to shift from “pushing through” stress, trauma and struggle—by attempting to manage everything on their own— to pausing and getting help. 

BLACK MENTAL HEALTH DATA IS MIXED

According to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, Black American adults were 11 percent less likely than U.S. adults overall to report having a mental illness in the past year and 36 percent less likely to have received mental health treatment, indicating fewer reported incidences and disproportionately lower treatment rates. Even so, recent data indicates that African Americans were 37 percent less likely to die by suicide than the U.S. population overall.

WHAT ATLANTA PRACTITIONERS SAY

Aprell Taylor is an LPC and certified school counselor. She helps her clients manage work stress, corporate gaslighting, the “angry black woman” trope and issues related to hormones and childbirth, including birth trauma, perimenopause and fibroids. The men she sees are often suffering from depression, manifesting as anger. She treats patients holistically, including conversations about diet and exercise.

When asked why Black people are often reluctant to seek care, she said, “Drapetomania was a term used to describe slaves who wanted to run away. [Medical doctors] said it was madness to want to run away from your captor… From that standpoint… a lot of Black people are suspicious of medical doctors. Why? Because they like to experiment on us.”

Through her practice, Season 4 Change Counseling, Taylor offers a book club and couples intensives and will host an upcoming international retreat for educators in Panama. She accepts a wide variety of insurance carriers.

Tasha Fortenberry is an LCSW and Yoruba priest. Her practice, Sanadoras Wellness, treats clients suffering from anxiety, depression, PTSD, personality disorders, grief from fertility issues and trauma from sexual abuse. About her Black male clients, she says, “There’s oftentimes this over-diagnosis around behavior—whether that is oppositional defiant or conduct disorder—when at the root of that often is trauma.”

Fortenberry helps clients by focusing on intergenerational patterns. “I notice that there are some women who do not have… aunts, grandmothers… that will help them be their best version of themselves.”

Fortenberry explains that the stigma around getting mental health assistance still exists in the Black community, often because of religion. “I’ve had some clients who have talked about being discouraged from therapy because the advice was to pray more about it… In the Yoruba tradition, there is a concept around what is called Ori, [which] translates as “head” … [It] gives us the direct connection to God. Sometimes, there may be this perception that as long as the person attends to their Ori… that may be the solution. But now… [the Yoruba community] has established a directory of licensed therapists.”

In addition to in-office and virtual sessions, Fortenberry offers home-based sessions for qualifying clients. She accepts several forms of insurance.

J. Bernard Ma’at Kynes is an LMFT and MDiv whose therapeutic practice was featured in the 2022 documentary film Master of Light. He facilitates groups in addition to his individual and couple sessions. He commonly works with people managing mid-life crisis, work issues, grief and family dynamics. He describes his groups as “More than just a support group… They’re able to allow more of the unconscious material to become conscious, and use it as a healing community for deeper traumatic wounds.” 

Kynes acknowledged the trend in the Black community from believing church was the only solution to mental health issues to embracing therapy. He explained that he made the decision not to accept insurance because cognitive behavior therapists are often rationally trying to resolve problems, while his approach is integrative: rational, emotional and spiritual.

He offers a sliding scale for sessions and the ability to join economically priced weekly or bi-weekly groups.

His clients are uncovering their purpose. “I’m more than just a husband, or a wife, or a mother, or a son, or a daughter or an employee. Who am I at the core essence of my being? And that’s where the work comes in.”

Andrea Bryant is an LMFT, MDiv and Perinatal Mental Health Certified (PMH-C). Her group practice, YouWell Collective, focuses on helping clients unpack childhood trauma, improve relationships, enhance their sense of purpose and identity and manage the stress and anxiety often related to motherhood and entrepreneurship.

Bryant works with couples preparing for marriage and offers pre-marital counseling and intensives. “I use a program that my husband and I went through called SYMBIS—Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts. Each partner takes an assessment that produces…  a very intensive report… I go through the report with the couple—typically… over a weekend. It’s an investment in your present and your future.”

While she does not accept insurance, Bryant offers sliding scale rates and partners with The Loveland Foundation, which provides up to 12 free therapy sessions for those who qualify. As her business expands, she plans to offer therapy packages to small and mid-size businesses.

Nina Joy Mena, MD, is a psychiatrist, motivational speaker, author and podcast host. She offers psychiatric assessments, medication management and therapy services for individuals and families. And while she treats patients with a variety of conditions, including anxiety, depression, trauma, burnout and ADHD, her practice focuses on joy and empowerment.

“What gives me hope is that more Black people are choosing healing instead of just survival. I’m seeing more conversations around boundaries, self-care, emotional intelligence, fatherhood, Black joy and generational healing. Social media, podcasts and public figures speaking openly about therapy have helped normalize seeking help.”

Dr. Mena authored The NJoyNAL, a “7-in-1 wellness journal” and therapy companion created to help people organize and balance their mental, physical, financial, aspirational and social wellness using her INSPIRE Joy Method. “I created it … for myself too, as someone balancing life as a wife, mom, psychiatrist, entrepreneur and woman with ADHD and anxiety.”

Mena is Chief Medical Officer for CHRIS 180, a nonprofit offering trauma-informed behavioral health services and support systems to underserved communities, including therapy, counseling, school-based support, safe housing, foster care and adoption placements.

According to Mena, “Healing doesn’t always mean the absence of struggle. Sometimes healing looks like finally setting boundaries, resting without guilt, asking for help, going to therapy, choosing joy intentionally or realizing you deserve peace, too.”

FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMUNITY

Hope McDaniels, MD, an Atlanta physician, spoke of her experience working with Kynes. “Over the 10 years, I’ve become louder and gotten to know myself… There’s infinite things to learn about yourself, so there’s infinite possibilities and need for maintenance of therapy.”

Gregory Ellison, PhD, worked with Kynes nearly twice as long. “It’s almost like going to a psychological chiropractor, and just making sure that everything is aligned…”

A Fortenberry client who wishes to remain anonymous says, “I took a chance and I do not regret it... Tasha put words and techniques to things that I… couldn't navigate in a healthy way… and held me accountable.”

THE PATH FORWARD

Acceptance of professional mental health care in the Black community has grown and continues to trend up. New media have brought healing off the therapeutic “couch” and into homes. Community organizations, group sessions and platforms like Psychology Today’s Therapist Finder and BetterHelp.com allow searching by racial identity. As conversations around emotional well-being become more visible and less stigmatized, Black people are redefining strength as the courage to seek healing. The path forward is not only about access to care, but about creating spaces where Black mental health is understood, honored and nurtured with compassion. ❧

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Referral and Resource Platforms

Alma  HelloAlma.com

BetterHelp  BetterHelp.com 

Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective  Beam.community

Charlamagne tha God Mental Wealth Alliance  MentalWealthAlliance.org/

Drug Rehab USA: Black Men Matter  bit.ly/drug-rehab-black

Headway  headway.co

Megan Thee Stallion’s Bad Bitches Have Bad Days Too  BadBitchesHaveBadDaysToo.com

Psychology Today Therapist Finder  Psychologytoday.com/us/therapists

Tariji P. Henson’s Boris L. Henson Foundation  BorisLHensonFoundation.org

Therapy for Black Girls  TherapyForBlackGirls.com

Social Media Influencers (Instagram)

Dr. Jay Barnett  Instagram.com/KingJayBarnett

Melanin & Mental Health | Eliza Boquin & Eboni Harris  Instagram.com/MelaninAndMentalHealth

Mina B.  Instagram.com/Minaa_B

Nedra Glover Tawwab  Instagram.com/NedraTawwab

Raquel Martin, PhD  Instagram.com/RaquelMartinPhd

Therapy for Black Girls  | Joy Harden Bradford, LP  Instagram.com/TherapyForBlackGirls

Nonprofits/Scholarships

CHRIS 180 – Creativity. Honor. Respect. Integrity. Safety  Chris180.org

The Counseling Brothers of Atlanta  TheCBoa.org

The Loveland Foundation  TheLovelandFoundation.org

Providers

Andrea Bryant, LMFT  YouWellCollective.com

Aprell Taylor, LMFT, MDiv  YouWellCollective.com

Charmaine Mercer, PMHNP  TheWLWDJP.com

Christina Camp, PhD  CampPsychologist.com

J. Bernard Ma’at Kynes, LMFT  JamesBernardKynessr.com

Nina Joy Mena, MD  DrNJoyLife.com

Tasha Fortenberry, LCSW  Sanadoras-Wellness.ueniweb.com