Toxic Stress, Discrimination, and its Lasting Impact on Mental Health

JUST IMAGINE: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A BLACK MAN

By Michael Lee

Let me take you on a journey.

You wake up first thing in the morning, and instead of preparing your day as another great day, you pay careful attention to your appearance. You pay careful attention to your language and words to avoid any possible mistreatment. 

You prepare for possible insults throughout your day in advance – the white lady that clutches her purse when you’re the only one on the elevator with her. 

You avoid going to certain places and dealing with certain situations, preparing for all the routine slights, daily indignities, and discriminating insults towards people of color. 

You’re on edge. You walk on eggshells.

Just imagine that.

Recently, I was asked as an African-American male a very important question. What are the effects of mental health and discrimination in the African-American community from a black perspective with lived experience?

“Simply put, black people experience higher levels of discrimination everyday. And that discrimination has severe affects on mental health and personal wellness. Let’s talk about it.”

First, we must speak candidly and acknowledge that mental health and discrimination go hand-in-hand. However, in the black community higher levels of everyday discrimination and mental health go hand-in-hand. In fact, the black community has one of the highest rates of untreated mental health disorders in America.

Simply put, black people experience higher levels of discrimination everyday. And that discrimination has severe affects on mental health and personal wellness. Let’s talk about it. 

It creates toxic stress and prolongs the body’s exposure to the stress-response system, also known as the Fight or Flight mechanism.

It puts your brain in a continued state of survival mode. And growing up like this, it causes other parts of your brain to not properly develop, causing social, emotional, and cognitive impairments.

This toxic stress impacts your thinking, problem-solving, and the ability to form and nurture healthy relationships. 

And the consequences are severe. 

It can lead to the adoption of health risk behaviors like substance use disorders, not eating properly, not sleeping, and not getting enough physical activity. It can lead you to take on too many sexual partners, which can lead to sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS, and unwanted pregnancies. 

And finally, it can lead to aggression, which can damage relationships, physical abuse to yourself and others, not being able to get along with others, inability to get a job or maintain employment, and ultimately incarceration. 

In fact, many of these things can lead to premature death.

Why? Because stress related to racism prevents parts of the brain the chance to properly develop. 

I grew up in the city of Detroit, Michigan where I witnessed shootings on a regular basis, resorting to violence to defend oneself, criminal activity, high levels of break-ins, theft, poor housing, unsafe places to play, people hanging out on the street corners, increased exposure to traumatic experiences and stressful toxic real-life situations. Just imagine.

I didn’t have to imagine that, I lived that, and I beat that.

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Michael Lee is a North Carolina Certified Peer Support Specialist (NCPSS), Qualified Professional (QP), and mental health advocate.