One thing we're working on at Future Black Female is a national mental health campaign for Black girls. We are going to roll out a national survey, because there is no information on the mental health experiences of Black girls. We can only surmise from other sources of data. We're rolling that out and we're looking for funding for mental health promotion specifically for Black girls and women.
Take PMS, for example. Black girls and women are more likely to be diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome, which means they're more likely to have more difficult periods and to suffer from PMS. This is not something that is talked about at all. It is stigmatized. It is even made fun of. We all make these jokes—“Oh, she's PMS-ing” and all that—but it's a significant mental health issue within that community.
These are the kinds of approaches we need. We need to understand the mental health struggles of different communities and where they're coming from, even if it is from physical health. Polycystic ovarian syndrome is something that's diagnosed by your physician, not necessarily by your psychiatrist.