5 Powerful Books about Asian American Mental Health
In a society that often overlooks the struggles of Asian Americans (model minority myth, anyone?), these 5 books offer a powerful and intimate look at mental health within this diverse community.
While over 24 million Asian Americans live in the U.S. (according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates in 2022), they are the racial group least likely to seek out mental health services.
This gap stems from several factors: cultural norms, stigma surrounding mental health in both Asian and Western societies, limited access to culturally competent care, and the persistent “model minority myth” that pressures Asian individuals to mask their struggles.
There’s a real need for more conversations about mental health in the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
If you need a place to start, I’ve compiled a list of 5 powerful reads by AAPI authors. They explore the challenges faced by the AAPI community in a relatable way. You’ll find stories of real people navigating mental health struggles, cultural and racial identity, and the impacts of intergenerational trauma.
These books can be a game-changer for AAPI readers, opening the door to real and honest conversations within themselves, their communities, and their families. And for everyone else, they offer a window into the rich experiences of the AAPI community.
Permission to Come Home: Reclaiming Mental Health as Asian Americans
By Dr. Jenny Wang
Dr. Jenny Wang, a Taiwanese-American psychologist and founder of the popular Instagram account @asiansformentalhealth, weaves together her personal story with her professional expertise in this empowering book.
Permission to Come Home delves into the challenges faced by many Asian Americans, including the pressure to excel, the burden of family expectations, and the stigma surrounding mental health.
Dr. Wang offers practical tools for navigating emotions, setting boundaries, and prioritizing self-care. Her writing style is warm and compassionate.
Part memoir, part clinical guide, this book empowers Asian Americans to embrace their full selves.
It grants permission to question, express anger, set boundaries, and experience the full range of human emotions (including those often suppressed by cultural norms).
Permission to Come Home serves as a roadmap for Asian Americans seeking wholeness, belonging, and healing.
Nervous: Essays on Heritage and Healing
By Jen Soriano
Nervous consists of 14 essays, detailing Jen Soriano’s experience of chronic pain and trauma recovery. Soriano brings readers on a vivid and intimate journey, spanning centuries and continents, weaving historical events, social commentary, and personal memories. Her writing style is poetic and flowing.
This book centers neurodiverse, disabled, and genderqueer bodies of color.
Topics covered include: the impacts of colonization (including the Spanish-American War that ushered in U.S. colonization in the Philippines); the world of activism and the chosen family that can emerge from it; and the stories told through our nervous systems, politics, and ecosystems at large.
What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma
By Stephanie Foo
Stephanie Foo’s seemingly perfect life — prestigious job, loving partner — masked a hidden struggle. Diagnosed with complex PTSD at 30, she dealt with the long-term effects of childhood abuse and neglect. Despite attempts to bury the painful past, the trauma continued to impact her present.
In this powerful memoir, Foo documents her quest to understand and heal complex trauma.
Through interviews with experts, innovative therapies (including EMDR and IFS), and a journey back to her roots (California and Malaysia), she explores the far-reaching effects of trauma, personal and intergenerational.
This memoir is a testament to resilience, as Foo learns to navigate life alongside, rather than against, complex trauma.
Where I Belong: Healing Trauma and Embracing Asian American Identity
By Soo Jin Lee & Linda Yoon
Having witnessed the silence surrounding mental health in their immigrant families and the Asian American community, therapists Soo Jin Lee and Linda Yoon created an essential resource: Where I Belong. This book discusses the impact of trauma on relationships, focusing on the Asian American experience.
It guides readers through processing and healing from racial and intergenerational trauma.
Lee and Yoon share their stories, alongside those of others in the Asian diaspora. Their book provides practical tools – reflection questions, journaling prompts, and grounding exercises – to help readers identify their strengths and embrace their full identity and culture.
But What Will People Say?
Navigating Mental Health, Identity, Love, and Family Between Cultures
By Sahaj Kaur Kohli
Therapist Sahaj Kaur Kohli, founder of the @browngirltherapy Instagram account, writes about the complex experience of growing up multicultural as the child of immigrants. She unpacks questions that often get ignored in the mainstream mental health field:
Can I establish my own values and embrace where I come from?
Is prioritizing my mental health really rejecting my culture?
How do I set boundaries and care for myself when family and community mean everything?
But What Will People Say? gives voice to the experiences of children of immigrants.
It discusses the limitations of Euro-centric, Western mental health approaches, and highlights the link between personal and collective healing.
Through personal narrative, research, and anecdotes, Kohli offers a guide to navigating mental health in a culturally informed and decolonized way. Topics covered include: generational trauma, guilt, boundaries, breaking down stigmas around therapy, and celebrating cultural duality.
MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES
Are you an AAPI individual looking for an Asian therapist? Check out these directories to find a therapist in your area.
Asian Mental Health Collective: https://www.asianmhc.org/
South Asian Therapists Directory: https://southasiantherapists.org/
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About the Author
Liz Zhou is holistic trauma therapist providing virtual therapy services in Colorado. She helps highly sensitive, neurodivergent adults and couples heal from the past and connect with their authentic selves. Liz’s specialties include EMDR, IFS, psychedelic integration, and therapy intensives.
