If you are an immigrant living in Illinois, Wisconsin or another part of the nation and you have experienced an uptick in anxiety, chronic stress and related mental health issues, you are not alone. Many immigrants like you are reporting significant increases in mental health issues and struggles in the wake of the most recent presidential election and the president’s promises to continue to take an aggressive approach to immigration in the nation.
Per Fox2Now, the mental health issues affecting the nation’s immigrants are not limited to adults, although they, too, are affected by the uncertainties associated with their life in the United States. Many of those who came to the country illegally as children are also under considerable emotional duress as a result of their questionable immigration status and near-constant fears of deportation and separation from their family members.
Immigration advocates, community leaders and representatives from Chicago universities and public health agencies met recently to discuss what actions to take to alleviate these concerns affecting you and so many others within the immigrant community. Calling themselves the Coalition for Immigrant Mental Health, the group sought to address how to improve mental health for immigrants of all ages; issues that may intensify if the president makes good on some of his previous campaign promises. In particular, the president has discussed docking sanctuary city funding for Chicago and other cities that limit their cooperation with the government in terms of immigration enforcement.
While this information about immigrant mental health concerns seeks to inform you, it should not serve as or replace legal advice.
