“Outside of my immediate family, there was a general thought that maybe I wasn’t an alcoholic enough to quit drinking. I didn’t fit the mold. I drank like everyone else and if I was calling myself an alcoholic, then what does that make everyone else? My sobriety was negatively internalized by many early on.” —Jyoti Chand, author (A Fitting Indian, 2025) and sobriety advocate.

There is an unspoken belief among many in the South Asian (SA) diaspora that mental health issues and substance use disorders (SUDs) or alcohol use disorders (AUD) are primarily a Western construct, not something “our people” deal with. However, given the harmful notion in many Asian communities that negative emotions are a sign of weakness, it is not too surprising that many SAs turn to substances to cope. This belief manifests in these issues being ignored or excused by others, especially female partners, who may fear backlash or shame.

According to addiction expert and media personality Dr. Lipi Roy, “stigma is profound in most ethnic communities and acts as a major barrier to treatment and care. In SA communities, women specifically face unique challenges that prevent access to treatment. These barriers include deep cultural stigma, shame, and judgement, as well as long-standing patriarchal traditions where women experience a strong sense of powerlessness.”

For Vasavi Kumar (author of Say it Out Loud), alcohol entered her life at the age of 14 when she used it to cope with anxiety. “We went to a typical Indian party, and I was served a drink, and I loved the way it made me feel.” She adds, “I was a pretty anxious kid growing up in my household, which was pretty chaotic. There was a lot of fighting and instability with my mother, who was a very inconsistent person emotionally.”

Unfortunately, mental health issues in immigrant parents are often inconsistently monitored, and help is often deferred until circumstances are dire. They may seek treatment solely to appease partners, take medications irregularly, and drop therapy after a session or........

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