Mental Health in Latine and Hispanic Communities 

This month is Latine and Hispanic Heritage Month, a time to honor and celebrate the strengths and contributions of Latine and Hispanic communities. Latine and Hispanic communities teach us the importance of collective care and relationships, and values such as confianza, (trust), and conciencia (developing personal awareness) (Bordas, 2023). These communities bring great gifts and strengths to U.S. society, meriting respect, gratitude, and attention. As reported by Mental Health America, “A mix of Indigenous and colonial heritage, Latine and Hispanic cultures vary greatly in regions across the U.S. People from Mexico and Puerto Rico make up the great majority of these populations. There are more than 20 different countries that make up these groups. They each have different cultures, beliefs, and experiences” (MHA, 2025).  

At this unprecedented time in U.S. history where the Trump administration is weaponizing the “us versus them” narrative (ACLU; Shah, 2021), re-organizing and militarizing various government agencies to carry out mass deportations, it is critical that we celebrate Latine and Hispanic individuals who have provided significant contributions to U.S. society. Immigrant communities make U.S. society stronger and wiser. According to recent Pew Research data, “thirty-three percent of U.S. immigrants are Latinx/Hispanic and 79 percent of Latinx/Hispanic people living in the U.S. are citizens.”  

There are too many to name, but some who have brought significant contributions are Sonia Sotomayer, the first Latina, and the third woman to be appointed judge of the Supreme Court of the United States, Bad Bunny, a contemporary artist representing the complex cultural identity, strength and joy of the Puerto Rican people, and Dolores Huerta, a legendary labor and leader of the Chicano civil rights movement (NWHM, 2025). Others whose legacies inspire many, are Paulo Freire, an educator and author who advocated for a liberatory form of education rooted in social justice, and Maria Lorena Ramírez Hernández, who won a 50-kilometer race while wearing her huaraches (sandals) and long skirt, the traditional dress worn by the Tarahumara, an Indigenous group who run long distance as a form of prayer (Preedy, 2021).  

Given the violence towards immigrants carried out by the current administration, and its violation of human rights and the U.S. Constitution, systemic harms are increasing, along with these concerns for the mental health and overall wellness of these populations. According to the organization UnidosUS, 17% of Hispanic/Latine people in the U.S. live in poverty (compared to 8.2% of non-Hispanic whites), and 50% of Latinos do not have access to paid sick leave at their jobs. Out of the Latine/Hispanic population, 17% live in poverty, and make up for 19% of the U.S. civilian labor force. 

Now more than ever, Latine and Hispanic communities need celebration and protection, as well as culturally humble (Khan, 2021) mental health support and human services professionals who understand the complexity and nuances of intersecting cultural identities and experiences (Lekas et al., 2020). Recent studies show that some of the issues facing these communities are poor communication and lack of access to care due to lack of Spanish-speaking providers and lack of access to insurance, and disparities in mental health treatment, including Latine and Hispanic young people being treated for ADHD and depression at half the rate of white youth (NAMI, 2025).  

Here below are some resources collected from Mental Health America (MHA) and National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to help guide and support mental health care providers in serving the Latine and Hispanic communities.  

Mental Health-Related Resources for Latinx and Hispanic Communities  

American Psychological Association-Immigration 
This website offers information for mental health providers and educators regarding the mental health needs of immigrants. 

American Psychiatric Association (APA) Stress & Trauma Toolkit  
Stress and trauma toolkit for treating undocumented immigrants in a changing political and social environment. 

APA – Como hablar con sus hijos/as de las elecciones en los Estados Unidos  
Educational resource in Spanish on how to speak with your children about the U.S presidential elections  

Immigrants Rising – Mental Health Connector  
A tool to connect with mental health professionals serving immigrant patients. 

Informed Immigrant 
This website offers multiple resources for Latinx, immigrants, DACA recipients and undocumented individuals. 

Mental Health America Screening and Informational Resources in Spanish 

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 
Find contact information for mental health services for refugees. 

Sources 

American Psychiatric Association. (2017). Mental Health Disparities: Hispanics and Latinos. https://www.psychiatry.org/File%20Library/Psychiatrists/Cultural-Competency/Mental-Health-Disparities/Mental-Health-Facts-for-Hispanic-Latino.pdf 

Bordas, J. 2023. The Power of Latino Leadership. Second Edition. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.  

Forcén FE, Vélez Flórez MC, Bido Medina R, Zambrano J, Pérez JH, Rodríguez AM, Santos LH.  

Deconstructing Cultural Aspects of Mental Health Care in Hispanic/Latinx People. Psychiatr Ann. 2023 Mar;53(3):127-132. doi: 10.3928/00485713-20230215-02. Epub 2023 Mar 1. PMID: 37781171; PMCID: PMC10540642. 

Harris DB, Roter DL. (2024). Profound Love and Dialogue: Paulo Freire and Liberation Education. Health Lit Res Pract. 2024 Jul;8(3):e118-e120. doi: 10.3928/24748307-20240613-02. Epub 2024 Jul 5. PMID: 38979815; PMCID: PMC11230641. 

Khan, S. (2021, Jan. 13). Cultural Humility vs. Cultural Competence — and Why Providers Need Both. Health City News. Boston Medical Center. https://healthcity.bmc.org/cultural-humility-vs-cultural-competence-providers-need-both/ 

Lekas HM, Pahl K, Fuller Lewis C. Rethinking Cultural Competence: Shifting to Cultural Humility. Health Serv Insights. 2020 Dec 20;13:1178632920970580. doi: 10.1177/1178632920970580. PMID: 33424230; PMCID: PMC7756036. 

Mental Health America. (2025). Latine and Hispanic mental health: Challenges, strengths, and heroes. https://mhanational.org/resources/latine-hispanic-mental-health-challenges-strengths-and-heroes/ 

National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2025). Hispanic/Latinx. https://www.nami.org/your-journey/identity-and-cultural-dimensions/hispanic-latinx/ 

National Women’s History Museum. (2025). Dolores Huerta. https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/dolores-huerta 

Neumeister, L. (2025, Sept. 16). Sotomayer urges better civic education so people know difference between presidents and kings. https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-sonia-sotomayor-b34d2a467aab1771aa5dbdca229c5928?utm_source=copy&utm_medium=share 

Pew Research Center tabulations of the 2017 American Community Survey (1% IPUMS). https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/09/16/key-facts-about-u-s-hispanics/ 

Preedy, Michael (1 June 2021). “Book Review: Exercised: The Science of Physical Activity, Rest and Health By Professor Daniel Lieberman”. Physiology News. doi:10.36866/122.12 

Renshaw, S. (2021, February 14). What is a Temazcal Ceremony? The Green Maya Project. https://www.greenmaya.mx/blog/2020/11/6/what-is-your-definition-of-church

SAMHSA. 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH): Hispanics, Latino, or Spanish Origin of Descent. https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/reports/rpt23249/4_Hispanic_2020_01_14_508.pdf 

Sanneh, K. (2025, Sept. 15). Bad Bunny’s Puerto Rican Homecoming. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/09/22/debi-tirar-mas-fotos-bad-bunny-music-review 

Shah, Naureen. (2021). How Trump is Using the Alien Enemies Act to Deport Millions. ACLU. https://www.aclu.org/news/immigrants-rights/anti-immigrant-extremists-want-to-use-this-226-year-old-law-to-implement-a-mass-deportation-program 

Unidos US. (2025). Statistics about the Latino Population. https://unidosus.org/facts/statistics-about-latinos-in-the-us-unidosus/ 

EMDR for Treating Trauma in Diverse Communities

Therapist takes notes as client sits on a sofa during a psychotherapy session.

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a therapeutic modality that integrates elements of exposure therapy, traditional talk therapy, and bilateral eye movement, as the individual follows and tracks the therapist’s fingers from right to left as they are invited to remember a memory associated with a trauma. The goal of EMDR therapy is to help individuals process past experiences and traumatic memories, integrating the associated sensations and psychosomatic symptoms as means of healing (Shapiro, 2014; Vereecken & Corso, 2024). “Over 300 studies and several meta-analyses have shown “higher or similar efficacy in PTSD compared to pharmacological or other psychological interventions” (Landin-Romero, 2018). The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and the World Health Organization have recognized EMDR as a gold standard in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (Born et al., 2013; Landin-Romero, 2018).  

The Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model, at the foundation of EMDR therapy, supports that “current experiences link into already established memory networks and can trigger the unprocessed emotions, physical sensations, and beliefs” belonging to traumatic or adverse life experiences, resulting in stressors triggering past memories stored in the body, causing dysregulation in the present. Bilateral eye movements activate “parasympathetic activation, resulting in physiologic calming” (Shapiro, 2014).  

There is growing empirical evidence (Vereecken, 2024) that EMDR is a highly effective modality for the treatment of PTSD and trauma in diverse populations, such as clients of color, veterans, asylum-seeking migrants, and LGBTQ+-identifying individuals. EMDR can be applied in therapy for children, teens, and adults, and has been observed to support positive outcomes after short-term durations of EMDR treatment (Bannink Mbazzi et al., 2021; Shapiro 2014; Vereecken & Corso, 2024). 

There was one study in which counseling interns offered an adaptation of EMDR called The Flash Technique (Yznaga et al., 2025) with migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border seeking asylum in the United States. The Flash Technique, a “low-intensity intervention,” or a treatment that is designed for settings which offer limited time for therapy, is a technique to help regulate the client’s nervous system so that the EMDR treatment could be more accessible and effective. Firsy developed by Manfield et al. (2017) Flash Technique, decreases in levels of distress for the client can result in as little as 15 to 20 minutes (Wong, 2021).  

First, the therapist invites the client to identify a distressful memory and is invited to remember, however not dwell on it. Later, the client is directed to direct their attention to a “positive engaging focus” (PEF), “something neutral such as slow breathing and body scan, or something positive such as a happy memory or an engaging conversation between the client and the therapist, e.g., discussing a hobby” (Yznaga et al., 2025). The therapist then prompts the client to blink their eyes 3 times, and loosely recall the memory, as if seeing it from a distance. “Over time, the vividness of the memory/image may degrade, and the memory would become less disturbing to the client” (Manfield et al.).  

Dr. Jenay Garrett speaks to the importance of approaching EMDR with an anti-racist lens and through integrating practices belonging to cultural humility and trauma-informed care, such as building upon clients’ strengths, celebrating their intersecting identities, and acknowledging power differentials between the client and therapist. Dr. Garrett offers guidance for how to integrate culturally humble practices with EMDR therapy, as she posits that EMDR therapy can lose impact without the client’s “collective, historical, and cultural experiences” being woven into the process in the first phase of treatment. (Garrett, 2025).  

EMDR is a therapeutic modality which can be adapted to a wide range of cultural groups and populations (Bannink Mbazzi et al., 2021; Garrett, 2025; Shapiro, 2014; Vereecken & Corso, 2024).  The bilateral eye movements, also known as saccadic eye movements [EMs], as our eyes do when we take a walk, send signals to the brain, activating the parasympathetic nervous system, increasing a calming effect as a result (Landin-Romero et al., 2018). EMDR is practical and effective and has been proven to reduce the distressing somatic and mental health symptoms resulting from traumatic experiences. Though discovered and developed in 1989, EMDR is experiencing a growth in interest as a short-term, evidence-based treatment for the healing of trauma in diverse communities.  

Sources 

Bannink Mbazzi, F.B., Dewailly, A., Admasu, K., Yvonne Duagani, Y., Wamala, K., Vera, A., Bwesigye, D., Roth, G. (2021). Cultural Adaptations of the Standard EMDR Protocol in Five African Countries. J EMDR Pract and Res.15:29-43. DOI:10.1891/EMDR-D-20-00028 

Manfield, P., Lovett, J., Engel, L., Manfield, D. (2017). Use of the Flash Technique in MDR therapy: Four case examples. J EMDR Prac Res.11(4):195–205. 

Born J., Rasch B., Gais S. (2013). Guidelines for the Management of Conditions Specifically Related to Stress. Geneva: World Health Organization. 

Garrett, J.G. (2025, July 25). Using EMDR with BIPOC Clients: Six Strategies for Children, Adolescents, and Adults. https://www.emdria.org/blog/using-emdr-with-bipoc-clients-six-strategies-for-children-adolescents-and-adults 

Landin-Romero, R., Moreno-Alcazar, A., Pagani, M., Amann, B.L. (2018). How Does Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy Work? A Systematic Review on Suggested Mechanisms of Action. Front Psychol. Aug 13;9:1395. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01395. PMID: 30166975; PMCID: PMC6106867. 

Manfield, P., Lovett, J., Engel, L., Manfield, D. (2017). Use of the Flash Technique in MDR therapy: Four case examples. J EMDR Prac Res. 11(4):195–205. 

Shapiro F. (2014). The role of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy in medicine: addressing the psychological and physical symptoms stemming from adverse life experiences. Perm J. Winter;18(1):71-7. doi: 10.7812/TPP/13-098. PMID: 24626074; PMCID: PMC3951033. 

Vereecken, S. & Corso, G. (2024). Revisiting Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy for Post-traumatic stress disorder: A Systematic Review and Discussion of the American Psychological Association’s 2017 Recommendations. Cureus. Apr 22;16(4):e58767. doi: 10.7759/cureus.58767. PMID: 38779227; PMCID: PMC11111257. 

Wong, S.L. (2021). A model for the Flash Technique based on working memory and neuroscience research. J EMDR Prac Res. 2021;15(3):123–135. https://doi.org/10.1891/EMDR-D-20-00048

Yznaga, S., Wong, S.L., Maniss, S. (2025). The Flash Technique as an Effective Low-Intensity Intervention for Migrants at the U.S. Point of Entry. J EMDR Pract and Res.19:0009.DOI:10.34133/jemdr.0009