, suicidal thoughts are rising among Latine adults. In fact, 8.6% of Latines between the ages of 18 and 25 had serious thoughts of suicide in 2018, compared to 7% in 2008. Major depressive episodes are also on the rise, increasing from 8% to 12% among Latine adults in the same age range between 2015 and 2018. These instances have escalated since the Covid-19 pandemic.
“For some, it is very serious conditions that affect someone's quality of life and their function in this world. And can even be life-threatening,” Batista says. “In our culture, it is treated as if it's a more superficial problem than what it really is. And that's one of the things that we're really trying to fight.
I’ve only been taking Lexapro for three weeks, but I feel my anxiety easing. It’s no longer debilitating. I don’t believe the pill is going to fully “cure” my anxiety, but it adds to the work I’ve already been doing to effectively combat it. Honestly, I think I took much longer than I needed to start. Maybe it was my own internalized stigma, but I wanted to prove to myself that I could combat my anxiety without more help. Now, I wish I would have gone this route sooner.