The hidden mental health cost of Islamophobia

For Muslims around the world, Ramadan is a month of peace, spiritual reflection and hope. For Muslims in India, it has been anything but. The country has seen a steady and frightening rise in the number of Islamophobic incidents since the beginning of the year, ranging from “Bulli Bai”, an app that auctioned off prominent Indian Muslim women as “deals of the day”; open calls by a Hindu priest in UP to rape Muslim women; to violent attacks on Muslim homes and mosques during Ram Navami celebrations in various states.

Islamophobia continues to be a daily part of life for Muslims in the country as we are lynched, objectified, unjustly imprisoned and brutalized. We are constantly targeted and experience the threat of violence in the workplace, in educational institutions, on the street, and in our places of worship. We experience violence firsthand or witness it through social media.

Religious discrimination negatively affects the mental and physical health of millions of people, pushing communities into health crises. Relentless Islamophobia has left Muslim communities around the world with deep mental trauma. This type of trauma is historical (experienced by a specific religious group over time), intergenerational (effects are felt across generations), and systemic (institutions and systems create and maintain trauma). What is the impact of such systemic trauma on our bodies and minds, and how do we heal from it?

Islamophobia and the response to trauma

Several studies document the impact of trauma associated with systemic oppression, marginalization, and discrimination, and correlate it with negative health outcomes for minorities, such as depression, suicidality, anxiety, irritability, numbness, poor concentration, hypervigilance, low self-esteem and negative self-esteem. -image (often resulting from internalized hatred). Systemic trauma also shares similarities with PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. However, this term may not encapsulate mental health outcomes for Muslims, as the trauma we are currently experiencing is relentless, persistent, and pervasive.

Systemic trauma has a significant impact on our nervous system. Our body releases certain hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol to fight or flee from dangerous situations (commonly called the stress response). These chemicals are supposed to be released in short bursts in our bodies so that we can protect ourselves from danger. What happens when there is no respite from danger for long periods of time, as in the case of systemic trauma? A prolonged stress response can have negative physical and mental health outcomes, including but not limited to hypertension, heart disease, insomnia or other sleep disorders, depression, anxiety, and even substance use.

In 2008, Jennifer Freyd, a psychology professor at the University of Oregon, coined the term “institutional betrayal”: institutional action or inaction that can make the traumatic experience worse. This term seems to aptly describe the experiences of the Muslim community in the country, as trusted institutions created to protect our safety and well-being (schools, universities, courts, governments) continue to be the perpetrators of violence and discrimination. It’s not just that traumatic experiences continue to occur, it’s that there are no repairs or restorations in sight. This explains the hopelessness most of us are struggling with right now.

Systemic or institutional trauma is historical, multigenerational, and embodied. Science has caught up with lived experiences, with recent studies suggesting that the effects of trauma can be passed from one generation to the next. This implies that the impact of trauma is felt not only by those directly exposed to it, but also by future generations. For example, negative stereotypes that are propagated about Muslims can be internalized and passed down from one generation to another, resulting in low self-esteem. Intergenerational trauma could also manifest as a vulnerability to certain healthy conditions. These findings make a powerful statement about how collective suffering could be shaping the culture and biology of the Muslim community for generations to come.

It also offers a ray of hope that if trauma can be passed down from generation to generation, so can certain intergenerational gifts like hope and resilience.

Collective healing and possibilities

In a system hell-bent on dehumanizing Muslim bodies, healing can be complicated and comes with its own challenges. However, it is possible not only to heal from trauma, but also to invite opportunities for deep emotional and collective transformation. There is no correct way to do this, but here are some suggestions:

Do not minimize the impact of trauma: One of the ways in which intergenerational trauma can manifest is the tendency to minimize trauma: to see oneself and the community as invulnerable or immune to trauma. The first part of healing from trauma is acknowledging that we are affected in some way by the systemic violence that keeps happening to us. We are strong and resilient, but we are also human and therefore vulnerable. Calling it what it is helps us move forward.

Recognize responses to trauma: Resmaa Manaken, a Minneapolis-based trauma specialist and therapist, summed up a deep insight into historical trauma with these three sentences: “Decontextualized trauma in a person looks like personality. Decontextualized trauma in a family looks like family traits. Trauma in a town resembles culture.” For example, we may drown at work (this is often disguised as a ‘strong work ethic’ in families) as a way of proving our worth to a system that sees us as flawed, or experience difficulty resting due to guilt. of the survivors. As a community, we may experience more fear, distress, or distress, but not recognize it as intergenerational trauma, as it has been decontextualized over time and generations. The second part of healing is recognizing the ways we respond to ourselves and the world due to our trauma, so that we can free ourselves of them.

Finding safety and support in the community: We have a psychological need for connection, security, and togetherness. These vital needs are blocked when we receive implicit and explicit messages, such as “you don’t belong” or “you are different and therefore unacceptable”, from the systems we engage with on a daily basis. Since Islamophobia attacks a core part of one’s identity, it is a natural response to be drawn to discarding religious identifiers or having a complicated relationship with one’s faith. Consider a pertinent example: girls who observe the hijab may develop complex feelings towards it, as it is an essential practice in Islam, but also a religious identifier that invites blatant discrimination or violence.

Turning to a community that understands and supports what you are going through is crucial to healing. It can be a group of friends, colleagues, family members, or other members of the community. The presence of a loving community where stories can be shared, heard and witnessed can do wonders for our nervous systems. There may be a gentle but powerful restoration of safety and dignity in these spaces.

Seeking professional help: Seeking help from a mental health professional can also be one of the ways to heal from systemic trauma. However, this path is not without obstacles for most of India’s minority groups. It could be argued that mainstream mental health work often fails to recognize socially relevant trauma as traumatic.

Most traditional trauma therapies focus on coping. While coping is a significant and necessary tool to learn in therapy, it is hardly enough to heal from systemic trauma. Well-intentioned therapists can often encourage their clients to tune out social media, limit news consumption, or not get politically involved, not realizing that these are not events to ‘tune out’ but rather a lived reality and experienced every day. . For these reasons and more, it is not uncommon for minority clients to prefer a racial, religious, or ethnic identity match with their therapists.

Studies have shown that open discussions about racial and ethnic violence can foster trust between therapist and client and lead to beneficial outcomes in therapy. A therapy rooted in liberation psychology or decolonizing psychology, focusing on resistance, would be more effective for minority groups. It has room for anger and anguish as natural responses to oppression, without pathologizing it. According to clinical psychologist and president-elect of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Thema Bryant, such healing practices attempt to answer questions such as: “How do I fight not to internalize these negative beliefs about myself and my community?”; “How do I use my agency to make my voice heard and connect with my community?”; and, “How can I cultivate compassion and support for what I’m going through?”

Most days, it’s hard to imagine what healing can look like within a system that continues to traumatize us. Having the language to express and share our pain can bring much-needed peace of mind. We might also find respite in the wisdom of our ancestors who survived worse horrors. As my friend Aiman ​​believes, there is much hope to be borrowed from the writings, poems, and paintings of revolutionaries past and present. if you’re struggling to find yours. I borrow mine from this excerpt from Erich Fried’s poem. Revoke:

And maybe be able to
talk about the pain
in words
in real words
words that are related
that make sense
and which one is capable
understand
and that maybe
someone else
could understand
or could i understand
and be able to cry
that would be almost
happiness again.

The writer is a counseling psychologist from Kerala.