Privileges and Challenges of Being a Black Therapist

by Zandra Baker, MS, LPC, NCC

TRN Co-Founder

I’m honored to contribute to the blog this February.  Black History Month provides a beautiful opportunity to honor Black contributors throughout society. Every year, I’ve learned about a new field or invention that can be attributed to a Black creative mind. In recent years, thanks largely to social media, it’s also where I tend to learn about a restaurant or corporation led by Black innovator, in a field where that leadership is rare and gate-kept. These moments bring a smile to my face and energize me to patronize the business or research something further. 

Conversely, it can also be challenging to realize that, increasingly, Black History Month is the ONLY time the recognition occurs— and now even less with many changes around the country. Exceptionalism can also induce a feeling of pressure both internally and externally. For many Black therapists this friction has trickled down to show up at work, networking events, and community settings suddenly treated as the expert in an unrelated area or a spokesperson— but only in February! These experiences contribute to the overall fatigue and burnout we experience. On top of that, ongoing research shows that the signs of burnout, depression, and fatigue in Black communities are different from the criteria we’ve been trained on, so what do we do to show ourselves care?

Celebrate and Rest.

This is why it feels hugely important to acknowledge, honor, and celebrate the extra work that we do that is passive and easily overlooked. We show up!

• Meeting the need of Black, Indigenous, and Clients of Color that have for years struggled to find therapists that look like them, leading to hesitancy in getting support. The Association for Black Psychologists condensed this data: “Nationally, 4% of psychologists (American Psychological Association, 2018) , 2% of psychiatrists (American Psychiatric Association, 2021), 22% of social workers (Institute for Health Workforce Equity, 2020), 7% of marriage and family counselors, and 11% of professional counselors are reported to be Black.” 

• Workplace Contributions are infinite. With those numbers above, our workplaces truly benefit from our presence! We are able to provide context, observations, and representation for our communities that often would otherwise would not be acknowledged. 

  
  

While celebrating, those same things can also be reasons for the disproportionate fatigue we feel as well. Rest and restoration are essential. 

• Check in with other Black therapists in your area and also in online community groups. These are a beautiful space for validation of experience, sharing of knowledge, and building friendship. 

• Turn off the therapist brain at the end of the work day. While being a therapist can often lead to a host of social and personable skills, it is your job. You don’t have to show up as a therapist in your personal life

• Attend a Burnout Prevention workshop or Support Circle :) This is a shameless additional plug for our monthly Friday series on Burnout Prevention and twice monthly Therapist Support Circle. You can register here!

• Having fun activities that are silly, relaxing, or educational with low stakes can be a great break and give your brain an opportunity to rest the part that has high expectations or accountability. Maybe find something your younger self always wanted to try!

As we approach the end of the month and continue throughout the year, let’s stay present with the work we do, the value we add, and rest we need.