While finding a great therapist is challenging enough, finding a black therapist is even more critical because there are less of them to choose from. Approximately 4% of psychotherapists identify as black or African-American, despite the fact that blacks make up approximately 13.4% of the United States population.
But not having access to a black therapist doesn’t mean that it’s not important for black people to access one when facing mental illness. In fact, finding a black therapist is extremely important for black clients. Here are a few reasons why.
Black clients are more likely to get misdiagnosed than their nonblack counterparts. This is incredibly important because an accurate diagnosis provides the best foundation for treatment of the client. If someone is diagnosed incorrectly, they don’t stand the best chances of appropriately treating the client. Several examples come to mind to help illustrate how this happens. For one, there’s no doubt that the church plays a huge source of support for the black community. Religious blacks might find “speaking in tongues” to be a form of spiritual connection that they’re having with their God. Disclosing this in therapy to someone who doesn’t understand these implications might easily yield to a diagnosis that sees them as having psychotic features when in reality they are simply responding in a spiritual context to their surroundings.
Another example of misdiagnosing clients could be addressing the dynamic of hair in the black community. If a black girl is getting her hair done when her therapist arrives for an appointment, a white therapist could easily misunderstand these interactions to be a sign of disrespect and disobedience, as opposed to a cultural habit that is understood in the black community to be essential to self care. I know of countless occasions where behaviors like this are very common in the black community, and have been misdiagnosed by poorly trained or culturally incompetent psychotherapist.
Blacks are also more likely to prematurely terminate therapy when working with a therapist who is not black. There’s no doubt that blacks have a stigma against western/European influenced behaviors such as psychotherapy. After all, the practice of psychotherapy is rooted in Western and masculine principles that have historically oppressed black people. In fact, a lot of their reasons for wanting to utilize services are a result of the setbacks that they experience, many of which are a result of the Eurocentric/westernized system that was not created with the black community in mind. Thus, if blacks begin a therapeutic process but realize that their therapist is a product of these Eurocentric and Westernized values that have systemically oppressed them, they will likely terminate before their treatment goals are met because they don’t feel comfortable that their provider has the skill set needed to address their concerns. And the truth is… THEY DON’T!
Additionally, blacks under utilize therapeutic services anyway, and are likely to further under utilize them when working with someone who does not culturally identify with their needs. For many of the reasons already addressed, black clients are often wary of entering a western system, especially since so much of their emotional and psychological damages are a result of these experiences. Due to cultural mistrust, a racial and ethnic mismatch between client and therapist, is often more harmful than it is good for the innocent, and unsuspecting black client.
Hiring a black therapist has MANY benefits.
First and foremost, there is trust. For many blacks, it is hard to trust the Eurocentric and Westernized system that often leaves one to feel unseen. But when working with a black therapist who also is a product of that environment, there stands a huge chance in connecting with your therapist who is also under the same pressures. Due to the element of white privilege, many whites don’t even know that they are oppressing black people because their actions are not overtly demonstrated. This has been detrimental for a majority of the race-related traumatic experiences that many blacks experience. Black therapists have a heightened sensitivity to this because they too are affected by such interactions and therefore can best identify with their clients who experience them.
Hiring a black therapist also helps to avoid stereotypes that often hold many black people back. For instance, many black women are uncomfortable discussing their anger in Western situations due to the stereotype of being an angry black woman. But working with a person who belongs to that community will help you to be less threatened by discussing this in therapy because that person identifies with those challenges as they undergo similar experiences in the world.
Black clients feel better understood by black therapists. Simply put, many black people communicate in ways that are just best understood by other blacks. For instance, an elevated tone of voice is not going to sound threatening by a person who also elevates their voice when expressing themselves. Using words like, “they got me messed up” won’t require an explanation from a black person who speaks the same way in an unprofessional setting. In other words, race concordant therapy, or therapy that exists between two people of the same race simply offers the opportunity for clients to experience the freedom to be themselves.
We employ a compassionate team of mental health professionals who are here with you all the way. To learn more about our services and to initiate therapy, please schedule your 15 minute, free consultation.
