S6 E2: Tarang Series: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Care Across CulturesS6 E2: Tarang Series: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Care Across Cultures
Addiction Medicine Podcast
Amy Johnson talks with Pooja Mehta about how stigma, culture, and family dynamics shape substance use and mental health care in AAPI communities. Their conversation outlines barriers to care and explains how Tarang works with trusted community leaders to create safer, culturally grounded support.
23:47•13 May 2026
Tarang and the Silent Struggle: Substance Use Care Across AAPI Cultures
Episode Overview
- Substance use in AAPI communities is often hidden by stigma, cultural shame, and the model minority myth, leading to underreported problems with alcohol and other substances.
- Collectivist values and family reputation can discourage individuals from admitting struggles or seeking treatment, as difficulties are seen as reflecting on the whole family.
- Language barriers and low cultural literacy in services can make first encounters with care feel unsafe or invalidating, pushing people away from further support.
- First and second generation immigrants face overlapping but distinct pressures, from trauma and displacement to the struggle of being a “hyphenated” American.
- Culturally grounded initiatives like Tarang work through trusted community partners, centring culture, trust, and safety so people can talk about mental health and substance use without feeling forced into secrecy.
“Everybody has a right to privacy. You do not have to share anything with anyone that you don't want to, but there shouldn't be a sentiment of secrecy.”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? This conversation brings together clinical practice and lived experience to shine a light on substance use and mental health in Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities.
Host Amy Johnson speaks with Pooja Mehta, creator of Tarang, a programme working with AAPI communities to “break the culture of silence around mental health, substance use, and suicide.” Pooja shares her own diagnosis of anxiety with auditory hallucinations as a teenager and explains how being told to hide it from her tight‑knit South Asian community kept her from engaging in care for years.
Her story will feel familiar to anyone who has ever thought, “I’m fine, I don’t need help,” while quietly falling apart. The episode looks at how substance use disorder shows up in AAPI communities, with Pooja noting that “the biggest substance use disorder concern…is drinking,” especially social drinking among men, and a growing issue with prescription opioids and benzodiazepines.
She unpacks how stigma, the “model minority” myth, and collectivist family expectations can make it hard to even admit there’s a problem, let alone ask for support. Healthcare professionals get a clear reminder that data can mislead when whole populations are undercounted because of shame, distrust of the medical system, and lumped‑together AAPI categories. Pooja also highlights how language barriers and a lack of cultural literacy in services can turn a first attempt at help into a one‑and‑done experience.
At the heart of Tarang is a simple but powerful idea: everyone has “a right to privacy” but shouldn’t feel forced into secrecy. The project works with trusted community leaders and culturally grounded spaces to build trust and encourage open, safer conversations around substance use and mental health.
If you care about culturally responsive alcohol and substance use care, this talk might nudge you to ask: whose stories are missing from your practice or community, and what would it take for them to feel safe speaking up?
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