July is BIPOC Mental Health Month
July Is Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, Also known as BIPOC Mental Health Month. The month was recognized starting in 2008. It is formally called Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. It was created to bring awareness to the unique struggles that Black, indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) face related to their mental health. Bebe Moore Campbell was an American author, journalist, teacher, and mental health advocate who worked to educate others on the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities.
To celebrate the month we're introducing you to members of the BIPOC disability community who've shared their mental health stories with us.
Meet Avery Jude Holbert
(he/him/they/them).
Avery has Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Attention-Deficit Disorder, and Dermatillomania.
About his diagnoses, Avery says, “These diagnoses affect my life in ways that affect many other people in similar situations: it could be a triggering sound, smell, taste, or even a similar-looking person that could bring back tough memories, bring you back to a place that you are not a fan of going back to, and then you find yourself struggling to climb back up that hill of some semblance of normalcy. I didn’t get diagnosed with ADHD until I was 34 years old! I think the thing that contributed to my late diagnosis is that I am transgender (female to male), and female-bodied people have a tendency of either getting not diagnosed or diagnosed later in life because we learn at an early age how to 'mask' our symptoms. About 3/4 into the MSW program at USC, I realized that I’d been 'masking' for many years, but in reality, I was struggling pretty badly. I presented my symptoms to my provider, who actually LISTENED to me and agreed that I was right: I was struggling, and I needed help.”
Avery's tools include:
- Escaping toxic environments – physically separating himself from people and things that cause damage
- Keeping up with his medication regimen
- All types of self-care which include:
- Spending time with his wife Elizabeth and son Jameson
- Fishing
- Reading/listening to audiobooks
- Watching true-crime documentaries
- Deep-diving into his genealogy Playing BeatStar on his phone.
Avery’s advice for those new to recovery from mental illness, is "find your people: find people who get you, who love you, and who want to see you win. It might be hard, but we will get there, together.”
Thank you for sharing your story Avery!
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