Giving back to community
One of the key components of ABCD Therapy & Consulting, LLC is to ensure that community is part of our work and that we give back to community. That happens in a variety of different ways including through academic research, policy advocacy, and established scholarship opportunities for mental health education for folks with lived refugee experience. We move most of our profits in Iowa directly into education and Ethnic Community Based Organisations (ECBOs) to support both individual and community growth and wellbeing.
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If you are looking to support Iowa ECBOs, we recommend these non-profits who do incredible work
AIRTS https://www.airts.org/
Bhutanese Community of Iowa http://www.bhutaniowa.org/
Community Mental Health Support
At ABCD Therapy, we focus on local and global mental health. We are available to support communities across the globe who are living through international emergencies and crises, who are working to understand cultural differences and misunderstandings, and who are looking find their own way through complex systems. Please contact us if you feel this support - individually or as a group - would be of interest to you or your community. We provide these groups in multiple languages including but not limited to English, Arabic, Nepali and Spanish.
Current and Past Projects
Current
Scholarship
ABCD Therapy provides an annual scholarship to cover tuition for students with lived refugee experience attending the University of Iowa School of Social Work. The goal is to support folks who are eager to become clinical social workers as they join the community of providers across the nation who can provide culturally and linguistically relevant care to refugee and immigrant clients.
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More information can be found on this page: https://socialwork.uiowa.edu/graduate/funding
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Current
Advocacy
ABCD Therapy engages in grassroots policy advocacy to address issues facing family, communities and marginalized populations today. We focus on improved health and mental health coverage by Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance companies; increased assistance for refugee and immigrant families; childcare access for single parents working outside the home; immigration reform that prioritizes family health and mental health.
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Want help with your agency's policy advocacy? Call us! We provide trainings in policy advocacy.
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Current
Research projects
IN PROGRESS:
The burden of the middle generation: Bhutanese families, caring for grandparents and children.
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Tigrinya single mothers, lack of child care access and financial strain
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Bhutanese Needs Assessment: Community needs, asks and gaps when working with mainstream service agencies
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Support Groups
01
African Immigrant Mothers raising black sons in the U.S. context
The racial hierarchy in the U.S. is often new and foreign to new arrivals. Many Black immigrant mothers find themselves raising sons in a culture and society they themselves do not know how to navigate to maintain their sons' safety. Many young Black men raised by immigrant mothers don't know how to help their mother's understand their own experiences and skill sets as men raised in the U.S. This group is an opportunity for parent and child to practice communication in ways that better share the anxieties, skills, thoughts and abilities of each. The goal is intercultural brokering and improved relationships.
03
Single mom's with lived refugee experience, resettled in the U.S.
Many mothers with lived refugee experience are resettled as single mothers, for many reasons. This group focuses on building community across families and supports needs that are specific to single mothers who have been resettled including separation from spouses, loss of family members, managing children, work and required appointments, building coping skills and increasing access to and knowledge of local resources and supports. Groups are separated based on language.
02
Asian community support groups in response to the uptick in Asian hate crimes in the U.S.
Hate crimes occur every day in the U.S., although the targets may change. In recent years, the U.S. has seen a spike in anti-Asian rhetoric and behaviours. This group is specifically focused on supporting folks who identify as Asian in processing experiences, anxieties and uncertainties while having to continue to move through every day life. Diverse cultural, social and linguistic norms are taken into account and incorporated into the group dynamic.
04
Teens raised in the U.S. by refugee and immigrant guardians - third culture mental health support
Many adolescents raised in the U.S. by immigrant parents report increased feelings of isolation, depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation. This group specifically builds community across adolescents to increase peer support, build coping skills, decrease isolation, and improve mental health. Participants are provided with opportunities to integrate in cultural elements from home, school and local community in ways that fit their identities and needs.