By Dulce Orozco, LMHC | Founder of Latina Immigrant Therapist
I have a favorite park where I go for walks. In my part of the world, it’s been raining a lot, so during my last walk, everything looked different with the extra leaves and brighter green trails. Even though I’ve walked the path multiple times, I felt disoriented; the difference in the scenery was playing tricks on me, confusing me. The abundance of color, plants, leaves, and green made me think of how for so many of us Latinxs, dealing with change—even for the better—can feel this way: disorienting and confusing, which can lead us to rejection and resistance no matter how good the “new scenery” may be. Coping with positive changes isn’t always easy for many Latinx and first-generation people, including myself.
As a Latina immigrant therapist working with Latinx and people of color from immigrant families, I often hear people saying: “Dulce, I am not depressed or anxious; I don’t need therapy.” I completely understand where they are coming from since many of us automatically connect therapy with not doing well; people struggle with thinking of therapy as a space that helps us explore barriers that can bring us closer to living an abundant and more peaceful life. It can help us identify some reasons why we find all change difficult, even when it’s beneficial.
Difficulty receiving:
We are very good at giving to others but sometimes we give so much that we have little left for ourselves. If we consider ourselves to be extremely independent, we may also struggle with recieving anything from others. For these reasons it may be difficult to receive or create space for incredible opportunities, and we may meet these changes with resistance and feelings of uneasiness.
Feeling we don’t deserve it:
Many of us live under the impression that working extremely hard is the only way to earn anything. On top of that, we live with a voice that says, “You are not good enough,” which makes it harder for us to receive great things and believe that we deserve them. Remember the infamous imposter syndrome? It can try to convince us that our hard work has nothing to do with any great opportunities that come our way.
Guilt:
It may seem ironic that even though a part of us wants better things, another part is conflicted because “we should be grateful for what we already have.” This intense guilt, in addition to the feeling that we don’t deserve good things, ultimately impacts our capacity to receive. The scarcity mindset among Latinas is REAL. We can be grateful AND aspire for more.
These are just some of the reasons why many Latinas and first-generation women of color can feel uncomfortable and even at a loss when abundance and opportunities visit us. Just as a vibrant outdoor environment paralyzed me during my walk, we may become paralyzed when being faced with bright opportunities.
We need to remember that even though many people have supported us and helped us along the way, this is ultimately OUR reality, and we can receive great things and give great things to others at the same time. It’s not as simple as it sounds; some of us need a safe space to process this kind of thinking. I certainly did, and therapy with the right therapist can serve as one of these spaces for anyone.
May you be able to receive endless possibilities and opportunities with open arms, confidence, love, gratitude, and compassion. This way, you can give back to the world and other Latinas like yourself. During this mental health awareness month, please remember that one way to take care of your mental health can be expanding your capacity to receive. After all, we all deserve good things.
Dulce Orozco, LMHC | Founder of Latina Immigrant Therapist
Dulce Orozco is a Latina Immigrant Therapist and speaker; she is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the State of Massachusetts. Dulce’s why is love, she wants her daughters, everyone she works with, and everyone on planet Earth to spend more time living in love than living in fear.
She loves to co-create safe spaces where we can thank fear and explain that we don’t need it at this time, so we can give ourselves the chance to see new alternatives. Because of her personal and professional experience working in private practice, community mental health, psychiatric hospitals, and counseling centers, she is fascinated by culture's role in mental health and how we perceive ourselves. As a result, she creates safe spaces to talk about complicated but critical topics. She has presented at Google, Association of Latino Professionals for America, Merrimack College, The City of Cambridge, Love your Magic, GitLab, and Amundi, among other places. Dulce's first language is Spanish, and she is also fluent in English and Portuguese.
Dulce’s work has been recognized at Promoting Good’s Event: Our Day of Good, and she was one of the Amplify Latinx 2023 Honoree Advancing Latina Leaders.
Dulce was born and raised in Venezuela and has lived in Massachusetts since 2001. She has two young daughters who constantly remind her how to enjoy the present, prioritizing play. She loves being a student and is usually learning something new.
