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Many people scoff at the fact that global languages don't have the terminology in the diagnostic and statistical model (DSM) of mental disorders created by psychiatrists in the West.
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The insinuation is: Western medicine & culture & English language are superior. Other global languages & cultures are inferior, backwards, or underdeveloped.
Hmm, I wonder if a global system of race superiority, religious conquest, slavery & colonization might have contributed??
Hmm, I wonder if a global system of race superiority, religious conquest, slavery & colonization might have contributed??
After having done community outreach around mental health in BC for ten years, plus meeting folks in Alberta, Washington, California, Ontario, and London UK, I have realized BIPOC self deprecation comes from both frustration with language barriers & internalized racism.
All cultures have stigma. All languages have words for emotions. The fact that your language doesn't have the clinical terms for diagnosed medical conditions in the DSM is less about your language and more about the effects of colonialism and white supremacy. English dominates.
English is used as the default in almost all fields of academic study. Yes, a few countries assert their own linguistic and cultural sovereignty, but Western culture and English language are the norm under which most high level works, including the DSM, have been created.
If your country had colonized half the modern world, psychiatry might be studied/practiced in your language & you would have terminology for diagnosed mental illnesses. If the terminology doesn't exist, don't put down your language -- work on creating it or support those who are.
All cultures have problems. Languages are meant to grow and develop. Learn about your language, your ancestors, and your roots. Don't shame your grandparents who don't know how to define a mental illness in your language. Work with them. Work with your community & make new words.
Also, living in the West, you feel the burden of settler guilt, immigrant identity crisis, second generation pressure, model minority syndrome - these things play games with your self esteem. You would be surprised how irrelevant English is for people in a lot of countries. 
