Voices from L.A. Thai community on mental health

p]:text-cms-story-body-color-text Clearfix”>

Over the summer, the Los Angeles Times spoke with Los Angeles' Thai community about mental health issues and access to care. Reporters observed self-defense classes for massage therapy students at Hollywood Career College, held virtual listening sessions with service providers and community organizations, distributed online questionnaires and set the table for informal conversations at A little Thai or Los Angelesthe first Thai Buddhist temple built in the country.

Many were concerned about the limited education and awareness in mental health.

“There is very little information in Thai that can be easily accessed,” said Keith Chatprapachai, President Thai American Association. Southern California.

Ben Comencul, a travel consultant, said that although he has talked about his mental health with family and loved ones, he feels it is not enough and wants to learn how such conversations can be more accepted in society.

During conversations with community members, people talked about their financial worries, the stress of being overworked, and the loneliness associated with adapting to a new culture in a new country. Some described how they dealt with their psychosis, how depression affected their livelihoods and how schizophrenia affected their families.

Here's some of what The Times learned:

Some wanted their community to understand that although their mental state may look invisible on the outside, their pain is real.

Kwanklao Disbanchong, a chef, didn't realize she was depressed when she opened her restaurant, Ruam Mitr. At work, she juggled between paperwork, cooking, online orders, social media posts, and networking at farmers markets. She was grateful to her mother for helping her through the stress of running a business.

In 2022, her mother died unexpectedly. A month later, she separated from her wife, who was helping her run the restaurant.

Disbanchong stopped doing the things she loved. For over a year, she avoided touching anything in the kitchen because it reminded her of her mother cooking for her every day. She pulled away from friends and community members because they gave unsolicited advice, insisted that she looked “normal,” or questioned her feelings because she owned a successful restaurant.

“I am someone who knows himself,” Disbanchong said. “What I want to tell people… is that you can't tell someone who is struggling with mental health what to do. Just listen with sincerity.”

Salug “Dis” Rodjanasopondist lost his older sister Nonthawan Rodjanasopondist to suicide in 2018. She has struggled with various mental health conditions, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and dissociative identity disorder.

His family took care of her as best they could. At his mother's restaurant, they sought advice from clients – police officers, social workers and community members – and eventually turned to a psychologist who spoke Thai.

However, the symptoms worsened. Nonthawan would leave in the middle of the night or cause disturbances in Thai temples. One day she stole her mom's car and drove north until she ran out of gas.

When Nontawan died, Dees contemplated different scenarios, replaying the events over and over in his mind.

“I would encourage anyone who may be experiencing something like this to not beat themselves up because it’s not something you can control,” he said.

He remembers his sister as a creative person who “taught me to truly appreciate art.” She loved to draw religious, ethereal designs, which inspired him to take up portrait photography.

Many Asian businesses hit by immigration raids in Juneincluding one outside Home Depot near Thai Town.

As a community worker for Thai restaurants, Nongnapus “Mild” Phuangthong of Thai Community Development Center said many businesses are experiencing staffing shortages and fear ICE will target them next.

“It leads to anxiety because they're afraid they won't be able to feed themselves, find shelter, find food for their family,” Phuangthong said.

Other service providers spoke of feeling helpless in caring for their clients in the face of changing legislation.

Chayanin “Teddy” Rattana-anun is a crisis counselor, family lawyer and case manager in Pacific Asian Family Centerwhich aims to end domestic violence and sexual assault in Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. When President Trump's “Big Beautiful Bill” for tax cuts and spending cuts was passed, Rattana-anun described it as “a truck crashing into our shelters.”

Rattana-anun, who often accompanies his clients to the Department of State Social Services to help them enroll in Medi-Cal, said sometimes it takes pleading, tears and luck to get approved. He advised his clients to get primary care, dental care and eye care as quickly as possible because they may not be able to get care next year.

“It breaks my heart what I do and it’s always, ‘Approved, approved, approved,’ and it’s about to be taken away and I feel like I’m counting down the time,” Rattana-anun said. “I'm afraid for them.”

Many had suggestions for improving mental health services.

Instead of using words like Rohchitwhich translates to “mental illness” and carries significant stigma, Thai CDC program officer Kittima Chambers is trying alternatives such as I'm sorry to describe a restless or uncomfortable feeling in the mind.

“We try…to use a softer word [for mental health]So [people] feel free to talk about it without judgment,” Chambers said.

Pai Aromdi, a licensed clinical social worker, wants to encourage more Thai-speaking people to consider the mental health profession.

“For people who want to work with and help the community… this [field] this is a very meaningful way to do it,” Aromdi said.

The community member said she stopped by the reporter's table at Wat Thai because she is a former health and social services teacher. Now in her 70s, she wants to help people, especially older generations, find information in Thai about how to maintain their physical and mental health as they age. People should be able to grow with these resources, she explained, because “everyone will grow old.”

“That’s why it’s good for me to contact you so I don’t die needlessly,” she said, laughing, as she filled out the questionnaire.

Several people encouraged their community to seek support if they need it and show compassion to those struggling with their mental health.

Santhipong “Golf” Rohanasopondist, a former US Navy corpsman and Dees' older brother, found it difficult to mourn his friends killed in service and the death of his sister because he was raised to “be a man and deal with it.”

It was only after he joined a therapy group for veterans and saw that he was not alone in his experiences that he was able to begin to cope with his PTSD.

“When I'm in group therapy or in my men's group, I can really connect and see and hear the other person's pain and suffering,” he said.

Phiphop Phufong, a Buddhist monk, visits people in nursing homes and hospices to recite protective and healing verses known as futta-mon. These blessings help people find peace in their final days and allow family members to process their grief and accept the death of a loved one.

“I want them to connect with a sense of nature, humanity and what it means to have life,” Phufong said through a translator.

Phufong had mental health problems that were exacerbated by living in a trailer at a Buddhist temple in Pacoima. He recalled his concern about whether the power would go out because he was using a heart monitor.

This fall, Phufong found permanent housing with the help of mental health worker Wanda Pathomrit. He shares his story with other monks because he understands the cultural and work expectations that are often placed on them.

“Many monks who have health problems or are facing challenges may feel pressured to quit being monks,” Phufong said. “But with my experience, I hope I can be a pioneer and show what it means to get help.”

Translator Supakit Art Pattaratheranon contributed to this report.