Psychiatric Treatment for A Female Chinese Immigrant
As I mentioned in my previous blog, Chinese Immigrants are highly motivated to succeed in America. One client that came to our service was a 30 year old Mandarin speaking woman. She was living in China, spoke no English, was very attractive. She met an American male,an attorney. She married him and he brought her to the USA. This was a dream come true for many Chinese females.
In China, the average female does not see much hope to improve her situation, ever, in her life. If you are born poor, that is the way you will live, and the way you will die. For many, it is difficult to have enough food. If she can get to the United States, where Chinese believe, “All you have to do is drink the water and you’ll get fat”, then there is hope for her and hope for her family (because if one member of the family emigrates, they are expected to work to bring the rest of the family to the USA). Many are aware of the desperation of impoverished Chinese people. So……this American male, who speaks Chinese, went to China from the USA and found this attractive, young female. He married her and brought her to America.
For her, it was like winning the lottery. NOW, she is an American and her family has improved status in their village, because, as I mentioned, the hope of many Chinese is to come to USA. So far so good, right? This American male, brought his wife to New York, and since she knew no English, had no social support of any kind, was totally subservient to her husband. She believes that he saved her life. So – she became his slave.
He wouldn’t allow her out of the house, would not let her talk to others, would not even let her touch the walls inside of the house because he told her - if she made the walls dirty he would send her away - she lived in constant fear. She did not know there were any options/rights for her as an American – with her new status.
What happened to this young lady was, she became depressed, was crying, feeling helpless and hopeless and wanted to commit suicide. Now, the husband didn’t want her anymore- damaged goods- so he put her out, and she ended up in a homeless shelter. Fortunately, she found a shelter with supportive case working staff, and though her caseworker – she sought out service in the ABC Clinic of Gouverneur Healthcare Center.
Summary:It took over a year for the social worker in the clinic and I to help this lady. She was assigned the diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Depressive Disorder with Psychotic Features. She was started on anti-depressant medication, and subsequently an anti-psychotic medication was added. Her mood gradually improved. She started to sleep and eat and the nightmares and paranoid thoughts have stopped.
Now , a year later, she has successfully divorced her husband – a process that was very difficult for her, because her husband kept calling her family in China and telling them the problem was her. Just recently, she has decided to return to China and will decide where to go from here. The good news for her is: with an American Passport, her status is greatly improved. She has learned English. She can now return to the USA at will and hopefully we will see her soon.
In China, the average female does not see much hope to improve her situation, ever, in her life. If you are born poor, that is the way you will live, and the way you will die. For many, it is difficult to have enough food. If she can get to the United States, where Chinese believe, “All you have to do is drink the water and you’ll get fat”, then there is hope for her and hope for her family (because if one member of the family emigrates, they are expected to work to bring the rest of the family to the USA). Many are aware of the desperation of impoverished Chinese people. So……this American male, who speaks Chinese, went to China from the USA and found this attractive, young female. He married her and brought her to America.
For her, it was like winning the lottery. NOW, she is an American and her family has improved status in their village, because, as I mentioned, the hope of many Chinese is to come to USA. So far so good, right? This American male, brought his wife to New York, and since she knew no English, had no social support of any kind, was totally subservient to her husband. She believes that he saved her life. So – she became his slave.
He wouldn’t allow her out of the house, would not let her talk to others, would not even let her touch the walls inside of the house because he told her - if she made the walls dirty he would send her away - she lived in constant fear. She did not know there were any options/rights for her as an American – with her new status.
What happened to this young lady was, she became depressed, was crying, feeling helpless and hopeless and wanted to commit suicide. Now, the husband didn’t want her anymore- damaged goods- so he put her out, and she ended up in a homeless shelter. Fortunately, she found a shelter with supportive case working staff, and though her caseworker – she sought out service in the ABC Clinic of Gouverneur Healthcare Center.
Summary:It took over a year for the social worker in the clinic and I to help this lady. She was assigned the diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Depressive Disorder with Psychotic Features. She was started on anti-depressant medication, and subsequently an anti-psychotic medication was added. Her mood gradually improved. She started to sleep and eat and the nightmares and paranoid thoughts have stopped.
Now , a year later, she has successfully divorced her husband – a process that was very difficult for her, because her husband kept calling her family in China and telling them the problem was her. Just recently, she has decided to return to China and will decide where to go from here. The good news for her is: with an American Passport, her status is greatly improved. She has learned English. She can now return to the USA at will and hopefully we will see her soon.
posted by Eric Malz at 6:44 AM
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