ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – During Mental Health Awareness Month, a southeast Minnesota initiative is helping support people experiencing low moods, anxiety, and depression in the Hispanic and Latino community.
Carmen Garcia, a trainer and coach with Program to Encourage Active, Rewarding Lives (PEARLS), says there’s a stigma surrounding mental health in the Hispanic community.
“With the Hispanic community, we have found that they don’t necessarily go seeking mental health support from a clinic,” Garcia said.
PEARLS well-being sessions offer a non-traditional approach to mental health support for the community.
“It’s not about just getting another pill for people, but it’s listening to them and seeing what the behaviors are that they deal with every day and other exterior components,” Garcia said.
It’s a free service that offers mental health screening, 8 to 10 one-on-one sessions with a bilingual coach, and a problem-solving plan. Garcia said the initiative was designed to be simple for community members, reaching them where they are.
“We use the word ‘acompañante,’ which means somebody who’s accompanying you. We let people know that we’re there to be by your side,” she said.
The program served 25 people in last year’s pilot program. A number many are proud of.
“We were so pleased as a county and as a region with the results of that pilot. We were able to actually increase and expand the funding this year to be able to serve more folks,” said Laura Sutherland, the regional coordinator with Southeast Minnesota Adult Mental Health Initiative (SE AMH.)
The program is funded through SE AMH grants. Services are offered in Olmsted, Mower, Dodge, Waseca, and Steele counties.
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