STRONG ROOTS, HEALTHY MINDS: Neurodiversity and Psychological Disorders Amongst Indigenous Youth

Cerno, Noelle "Last-First Day" 17, August 2025. 

Garcia, Monica "Senior Portrait" 23, January 2026. 

Jeannette Armstrong, an author from the Okanagan tribe elaborates the importance of her people and their connection to the ancestral land.  Armstrong emphasizes the Okanagan's relationship with the land through the concept of the "4 Self's"  on the physical self, emotional self, thinking self and spiritual self.  These traditions, suggest that the body consists of many psychological variations that shape our actions and personality. The relationship with the 4 Selves can assist in feeling grounded, whereas a lack of this tradition can lead to a feeling of being disconnected and resulting in a lost sense of identity. 

Armstrong, Jeannette. "Sharing One Skin: Okanagan Community." The Case Against the Global Economy: And for a Turn Toward the local, edited by Jerry Mander and Edward Goldsmith, Sierra Club books, 1996, pp. 460-470.

Author B. Toastie highlights how ironic it is to name most spiritual lands after military figures and colonists. The names we give these pieces of land are not labels but however, a narrative that tells a story about the history and identity as indigenous people and our ancestors. Toastie argues that continued usage of colonial settler names is keeping the history and stories hidden. "A lot of places are attached to a story, and those stories are important for us to remember because they're really telling us something about ourselves" Toastie says.  This significantly changed our perspectives of landmarks that influence our connection and way of viewing the environment.

Oaster, B. ‘Toastie,’ and B. ‘Toastie’ Oaster. “How Place Names Impact the Way We See Landscape.” High Country News, 24 Jan. 2024. 

Joseph (Joe) Suina, a male author from Cochiti Pueblo recalls his experiences from growing up in a traditional household. In comparison to starting a new journey in an american boarding school and his transition. This article significantly highlights the harsh effects of culture shock and hardships he faced. Thus including forgetting his traditional ways, not being able to speak his native language and the impacts this transition had on his mental being. Through the american school system, it had caused an identity crisis for Suina Therefore, Suina educates many people of the native american community to not give up on their traditions and ways of life while being present in a modern world. 

Rethinking Schools. “‘And Then I Went to School’ - Rethinking Schools.” Rethinking Schools, 22 June 2021. 

 Author Zhingsong Zang highlights the challenges neurodiverse and psychologically ill face today. Research in this article was based on stigma amongst the Asian ethnic groups ranging from six different countries; China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea and Thailand. Many individuals who struggle with psychiatric illnesses face discrimination that leads them into low self-esteem. According to reports from Asian Countries, most parents tend to "stow" away their children due to fear of judgement. As these children grow up, most turned to suicide within the factors of not being accepted for who they are. Studies within the Center of Disease Control (CDC) prove that peers who are educated or informed on psychiatric illnesses will reduce most amounts of stigma. Research showed that educated peers tend to advocate for the struggling. 

               Zhang, Z., Sun, K., Jatchavala, C., Koh, J., Chia, Y., Bose, J., Li, Z., Tan, W., Wang, S., Chu, W., Wang, J., Tran, B., & Ho, R. (2019). Overview of Stigma against Psychiatric Illnesses and Advancements of Anti-Stigma Activities in Six Asian Societies. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(1), 280. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17010280

Written by B. Tekola, this article emphasizes the challenges faced by struggling youth in low income countries. This article focused on East Africa in a country called Ethiopia. Research based in this Ethiopia showed that there is a  prevalence of  500,000 cases of Autism. Due to being one of the most low-income countries in the world, assistance is only accessible to those who deem "wealthy". Patients are required to pay a minimum of $75 for ASD diagnosis testing within a government funded clinic. There were about 6 clinical professionals who were stationed in different towns of Ethiopia. Most people of Ethiopia avoided receiving help for their children due to these stations being located in foreign areas. Reports based on those of the ASD quantity who are assisted by professionals say that they are not actually professionals. This was elaborated by the clinical professionals not fully educated on Children's Psychiatry. 

              Tekola, B., Baheretibeb, Y., Roth, I., Tilahun, D., Fekadu, A., Hanlon, C., & Hoekstra, R. A. (2016). Challenges and opportunities to improve autism services in low-income countries: lessons from a situational analysis in Ethiopia. Cambridge Prisms Global Mental Health, 3, e21. https://doi.org/10.1017/gmh.2016.17

Irene J Park highlights the impacts of parental discrimination amongst 269 Hispanic/Latino adolescents. Amongst these youth, it was shown that discrimination coming from the father caused more impact on children's health. Such impacts include; harsh parenting practices, parent-child hostility, cultural context and religion. It was recorded that 17.9 million Hispanic/Latino youth under 18 compromised the largest minority group of the U.S. Amongst this minority, this ethnic group is the 2nd largest to face mental health disparities. A "ripple-effect" is an ongoing cycle as to why most parents don't get their children's assistance. Parents of the 269 diagnosed youth expressed their feelings towards testing and wanted to avoid it believing their child is "normal". All diagnostics, comprehension was reported between ages 12 to 17. 

               Park, I. J., Du, H., Wang, L., Williams, D. R., & Alegría, M. (2017). Racial/Ethnic Discrimination and Mental Health in Mexican-Origin Youths and their Parents: Testing the “Linked Lives” hypothesis. Journal of Adolescent Health, 62(4), 480–487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.10.010