I’ve been thinking about mental health a lot recently. Especially around the holidays, I found myself thinking about my own personal experiences. I’ve been really trying to understand the stigma around mental health and wellness as I dive into my own mental health journey, but I’ve also been thinking about the larger impacts that mental health has on our society. Being in the public eye and having a large social media following, there are a lot of challenges I’ve faced emotionally and adjustments I’ve had to make to my way of living. People who are safe behind a keyboard can be cruel, and I didn’t truly realize how bad they can get until gaining that following.    Recently on the podcast, I’ve been talking to some mental health professionals on the different types of challenges people are facing, as well as the stigmas that are rooted deeper than just the top-level feelings. I’ve been a proponent that we should share more about mental health so that we can normalize it, but as I’ve been talking with more experts through this podcast, I’ve learned that this is only one of many things we need to be doing to destigmatize mental health conversations.    Dr. Han Ren came to the United States as a child and faced a lot of the normal mental health challenges that kids do growing up. However, she also had to deal with challenges that were specific to her being an immigrant. As she got older, Dr. Han realized that there are different types of mental health challenges that people of different identities face. She’s dedicated her career to helping people understand the feelings that they have toward their identity aren’t always going to be the same. She helps people transfer their feelings of shame into positive action toward racial justice. Dr. Han is an expert on integrating anti-racism and self-care into mental health by helping others understand the role identity plays in mental health.   We’re going to talk about her views, her personal experiences as an immigrant, the impacts of identity and race have on mental health, and the ways that we can support one another. With her lived experiences and medical background, listening to Dr. Han is a great starting point to understanding this often difficult topic. Find Dr. Han Ren here:   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.han.ren/    TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drhanren    Website: https://www.drhanren.com/    Pivot Psychology: https://www.pivotpsychologyatx.com/  Find Nick Thompson here:   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nthompson513/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXipWcR8Pit6vYHd1ZcKgKg