"It seems like a lot of mental health messaging seems to be a rejection of Asian values..."

👋Welcome back to the Asian Mental Health podcast, and to the midway point of season1! Time flies!

And in this episode, it’s just your hosts Asami, Marcus and Oscar, trying to answer this question that was submitted by someone from the Shapes and Sounds community:

“It seems like a lot of mental health messaging seems to be a rejection of Asian values. For many of us, our parents worked hard and ran their own business, and valued our education, essentially focusing on the things we can control. As a result, intergenerational mobility is higher for Asians than for white people.

But modern grievance culture tells us that capitalism is evil, maths is racist, and Asians are white adjacent. The prosperity of our parents is considered to be the result of privilege, rather than their hard work and delayed gratification. How do we balance this type of mental health messaging with the values we have been taught by our parents? Is there a better type of mental health messaging that empowers people to work towards their goals without burning out, and without getting caught up in status contests?”

It’s such a layered and juicy question, did we answer it okay?

Through our discussion, you’ll also learn about:

💡How positive stereotypes (like, “all Asians are smart”), can be really harmful for our mental health and wellbeing

💡The way in which Asami would exploit this positive stereotype (she’s not proud of it)

💡How Marcus defined and connected in with his values, which you can follow to find your values

💡One really surprising way in which social media might be impacting your mental health, as outlined by Oscar, who manages our social media!

You can read the transcript over on our website ⁠here⁠.

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This episode includes journaling prompts both for the person who submitted this question and, for you!

✍️Scribble your answers down to these prompts:

• where in your life do you feel like you're not gaining the recognition and celebration that you deserve and why?

• how have you come to define success in the past, and does that still align with your values today?

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As we’re a brand new podcast, we’d love for you to help us in three ways:

• Download this episode so you can refer back to it when you need!


• Join us in our mission of destigmatising mental health conversations in Asian communities by sharing this episode with your friends and family


• Connect with us on instagram ⁠@justshapesandsounds⁠

🌱You can learn more about Shapes and Sounds at our website: ⁠justshapesandsounds.com⁠

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This podcast is proudly supported by the Victorian Department of Health via the Diverse Communities Program however all the thoughts and ideas you hear are independently ours and our guests. 

This podcast talks about mental health and answers questions directly from our community. However, all information provided is shared as general information only and does not replace individualised mental health care. Please always consult with your trusted GP when making changes to your mental health care plan. 

Lastly, as we’re discussing mental health, some of the conversations might be difficult or painful to listen to. If so, we encourage you to press pause on the episode and if it feels right, return to it at another point in time.

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PS. Keen to submit a question for future episodes of the Asian Mental Health podcast? Share your question with us here.