My research explores how inequities in stress, grief, and oppression shape mental health outcomes in Black and Indigenous communities—especially how gendered and racialized expectations influence how people cope. I focus on the Superwoman Schema (Woods-Giscombé, 2010) and how it can pressure Black women and femmes to prioritize strength and determination over self-preservation and health, leading to harmful coping patterns.
One example I study is Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs), a group of obsessive-compulsive-related disorders. I examine how the superwoman role influences the way Black women and femmes experience and manage these behaviors—often using them as a way to avoid confronting stress and grief.
My work also challenges mental health standards that fail to capture the unique experiences of minoritized communities. As an arts-based researcher, I use Critical Narrative Intervention, Afrofuturism, and Digital Storytelling, to help reshape the current public mental health climate to better serve our communities.
