CT Clearinghouse

Mental Health and Wellness Resources for the Black Community

Mental Health Resources

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988: the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or 211 in Connecticut. Text CT to 741741 for the Crisis Text Line. In an Emergency, call or text 911

211 of Connecticut 
Search online or call 211 for assistance in finding mental health and substance use treatment services. 

BEAM: Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective
BEAM’s mission is “to remove the barriers that Black people experience getting access to or staying connected with emotional health care and healing.” This is achieved through “healing justice based organizing, education, training, grantmaking and advocacy."

Black Therapists Rock
President and CEO Deran Young, LCSW, created Black Therapists Rock as she noticed a gap in mentorship, knowledge sharing and unity among helping professionals. She saw this as an opportunity to organize counseling professionals towards ACTION in decreasing the stigma and other barriers to psychological and social well being among African Americans and other vulnerable populations.Includes a therapist finder, a Facebook Group, and more. 

The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation
Founded by Taraji B. Henson in memory of her father, to “focus on eradicating the stigma around mental health issues in the African-American community.” The site includes a Directory of Mental Health Providers and Programs serving the African American Community.

Brother, You’re On My Mind
To help start conversations about mental health, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities launched Brother, You're on My Mind: Changing the National Dialogue Regarding Mental Health Among African American Men. This initiative uses a variety of activities to raise awareness of the mental health challenges associated with depression and stress that affect African American men and their families. The site includes fact sheets and a toolkit users may download.

Community Healing Network
Community Healing Network is a 501(c)(3) organization focused on escaping from the false narrative of White superiority and Black inferiority through emotional emancipation and writing our own narrative driven by the truth of Black humanity

CT BIPOC Mental Health & Wellness Initiative
This initiative was created so to provide a safe space to openly discuss the impact of this pandemic & Racial Trauma due to the open attack on Black America. These forums will allow you to openly vent as well as get supportive resources.

Dr. Joy DeGruy
Ms. DeGruy’s research focuses on the intersection of racism, trauma, violence and American chattel slavery. She has over thirty years of practical experience as a professional in the field of social work. She conducts workshops and trainings in the areas of intergenerational/historical trauma, mental health, social justice, improvement strategies and evidence based model development. Ms. DeGruy has published numerous refereed journal articles and book chapters and authored her seminal book entitled “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury & Healing.” She has also developed an assessment scale for measuring respect with regard to African American male youth.

Embodied Truth Healing
Embodied Truth Healing & Psychological Services is a space for intentional healing of the whole self - Mind, Body, Heart, and Spirit.   It is an intimate and intentional space for seeking truth. From Dr. Shena Young, Body Inclusive Clinical Psychologist, Certified Trauma Informed Yoga Teacher, Reiki Practitioner. 

Ourselves, Black
The site offers information about mental health promotion and positive coping as well as resources related to mental illness and treatment. Curated content includes online narratives and podcasts, as well as a print option. 

Sista Afya
Sista Afya’s mission is to sustain the “mental wellness of Black women through building community, sharing information, and connecting Black women to quality mental wellness services.” Content includes information about mental health conditions, healing options, social support, finding services, financial strategies to pay for services, as well as apps and hotlines.

The Steve Fund 
The Steve Fund is the "nation’s only organization focused on supporting the mental health and emotional well-being of young people of color.  The Steve Fund works with colleges and universities, non-profits, researchers, mental health experts, families, and young people to promote programs and strategies that build understanding and assistance for the mental and emotional health of the nation’s young people of color." 

Therapy for Black Girls 
Therapy for Black Girls is an "online space dedicated to encouraging the mental wellness of Black women and girls." Content includes a therapist locator, a weekly podcast, a support community, and blog. 

Therapy for Black Men
The TherapyforBlackMen.org directory allows visitors to search for a therapist or coach by their location and specialization. View their credentials, see what issues they treat, and get an idea if they’ll be a good fit.

Professional Development

It Takes a Village: Addressing Behavioral Health
In honor of Black History Month, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) hosted a virtual roundtable on February 16th, 2023, featuring speakers with lived experience, community leaders, and practitioners discussing behavioral health challenges in Black communities. Through personal stories and innovative programs, speakers highlighted the often untapped cultural resources that lessen the burden of disease and promote resiliency. 
View the recording here.

APA Member Town Hall: Listening to You about the Ongoing ‘Racism Pandemic’
Watch online: 2020 APA President Dr. Sandy Shullman, President-elect Dr. Jennifer F. Kelly, past-President Dr. Rosie Phillips Davis, and CEO Dr. Arthur Evans for a town hall, in which we came together as an APA community for a continuation of the conversation on the “racism pandemic” that is devastating the nation. 

Improving Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals
Learn how to better respect and respond to your client's unique needs in this free, online training.
This program is accredited for 4 – 5.5 contact hours for counselors, nurses, psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers. Other professionals may earn a Statement of Participation.

Mental Health and Racial Trauma Within the Black Community in Connecticut
Presenters Kelvin Young, Yanique Grant and Janelle Posey Green provided information to help participants gain an understanding of racial trauma and how it affects Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) mental health and wellbeing.

Protective Factors for Healing from Trauma in BIPOC Communities
Recording of the presentation from Friday, July 10, 2020, 2:15 PM
In the wake of COVID-19 and the renewed calls of Black Lives Matter after the killings of Ahmaud Arbrey, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and Terry McDade many BIPOC have turned to community based healing practices as a protective factor for mitigating the onslaught of trauma.  These practices, rooted in cultural traditions, act as a “protective shield” from and healing balm for trauma. 

In this free, 60 minute webinar learn about

  • Increase our understanding of community based healing practices.
  • Discuss how community based healing practices differ from traditional mental health treatment approaches
  • Share an example of a community healing practice
  • Get resources for learning more about healing practices that can be brought to your community.

Virtual Gatherings - UCONN Health Disparities Institute
View recorded virtual gatherings, including Parenting During Periods of Uncertainty & Unrest; Beneath the Masks: Men, Masculinities and COVID-19 Disparities; Racial Profiling of Black Men During the Pandemic, and others. 

Responding to the Alarm: Addressing Black Youth Suicide
In collaboration with the Office of Behavioral Health Equity at SAMHSA, this 90-minute interactive roundtable webinar featured co-authors of the Taskforce (to examine Black Youth Suicide and Mental Health) report, including the leader of the Taskforce, answering our most pressing questions about Black youth suicide. Panelists discussed the latest trends and prevalence of suicide and suicide-related behaviors among Black children and youth and heard about the common risk and protective factors that are most salient for this population. The panel also shared their perspectives on this crisis and suggested some of the ways to identify Black children and youth who are at risk for suicide, how to best engage them, and provide them with developmentally and culturally appropriate support and care.

Taking On the Perfect Storm: Faith-Based Organizations and Partnerships Address COVID-19 Critical Behavioral Health Needs in Communities of Color
View a recording of this July 16, 2020 NNED virtual roundtable hosted by the NNED National Facilitation Center and SAMHSA’s Office of Behavioral Health Equity, in partnership with SAMHSA’s Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network Coordinating Office. Learn how faith-based NNED partner organizations are supporting the mental health concerns of racial/ethnic minorities and providing opportunities to receive support and connection through faith-based practices and partnerships.

This NNED virtual roundtable highlighted:

  • Faith-based partnerships that address the behavioral health in communities of color and augment the behavioral health workforce;
  • Cultural and spiritual practices provided by faith-based organizations to strengthen community and social connectedness during times of crises;
  • Faith leaders’ strategies to help diverse communities cope with trauma, loss, and grief; and
  • The importance of and role of faith leaders in promoting self-care among the health care workforce, caregivers, and themselves.

Youth Racial Stress and Trauma: Conceptual Framing and Applied Clinical Strategies in
Youth of Color
In this webinar recording, presenters discussed the "impact of racial stress and trauma (RST) on youth of color across developmental periods. This webinar also introduced the Developmental and Ecological Model of Youth Racial Trauma (DEMYth-RT) Model, an approach to understanding how racial trauma impacts the child, family and community and identify clinical recommendations to assist youth of color in coping with RST."

Connecticut Resources

AFCAMP 
AFCAMP's mission is to "educate, empower and engage parents and community to improve quality of life for children with special needs and others at risk of education inequity or system involvement."

NAACP Connecticut
The NAACP's mission is to "secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons."

Urban League of Greater Hartford
The Urban League's mission is to "reduce economic disparities in our communities through programs, services and educational opportunities." 

Professional Organizations

The Association of Black Psychologists

Greater Hartford Alliance of Black Social Workers

The National Association of Black Social Workers

The National Black Nurses Association

Black Men in Social Work
Black Men in Social Work is a private Facebook group for "Black Men who are social work students or social work practitioners. This is a safe and free space for you to be able to share ideas, opportunities, scholarship, network, and uplift one another."

*** Event recordings are added as they become available***