In times of uncertainty, it’s important to have coping mechanisms that you can fall back on when you’re facing anxiety, stress, and other mental health issues. At Aliento, we pride ourselves on having a specific department, Cultiva, dedicated to providing those tools to the community. Cultiva encompasses multiple programs that use different forms of art and healing practices. Prioritizing your psychological health in the same way one would prioritize physical health is important to keep yourself grounded in times of political and social uneasiness. Therapy is a form of healing that follows various structures, all of which help you learn long-term coping mechanisms, change the way you interact with others, and improve chronic stress. This is because of the social support a therapist brings, allowing space to validate your feelings. Of course, therapy is not necessarily always accessible. When it comes to low-income communities, therapy is not always affordable even under insurance. As for communities of color, they aren't granted a wide array of culturally competent therapists. These are just some of the many barriers to accessing quality therapy.

Cultiva acknowledges this, which is why we hold mental health check-ins for the community. The mental health check-ins are meant to bring together people who have struggled with the same things, whether of a shared mental illness, or a traumatic experience. In this case, Cultiva holds support groups for people who are undocumented, DACAmented or are a part of a mixed-status family. This allows people to share their experiences in a community that shares similar struggles in a therapeutic setting. Instead of feeling isolated within your own experiences, you’re learning from others in the same situation while also listening.

These check-ins are meant to offer you a place to grow, free, and are held almost once a month year-round. It allows people to alleviate some of the stress they face in their day-to-day life from the dangers of living in the United States. There is so much mental and emotional exhaustion that comes with living without citizenship or being in a mixed-status family where the fear of your family impacts you as well. This leads most immigrants to have poor mental health, and not focus on this because of cultural or economic priorities. These priorities can include attempting to assimilate into a new culture and creating a better life for their families. But, instead of feeling isolated through this experience in a one-on-one session or afraid of where that may lead you, you can surround yourself with people who feel similarly or have been in that situation, learn how to grow from it, cope with it, and be surrounded by familiarity.

Cultiva: How group support can support mental health