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Authored by: Ariel Nickie Davies, PsyD
Immigration anxiety isn’t new, but the growing focus on immigration over the past decade—with what seems like a significant jump in attention in recent years—has increased experiences of immigration anxiety.
Over the last year, people living in the US have been flooded with information about policy changes, including the goal of increased immigrant deportation. What is new is the visual access to live interactions between immigration officers and the public, including images and videos that trigger heightened emotions for some. With many of the videos posted on social media being recorded by bystanders, people are now more than ever exposed to these interactions. For many, these situations are often experienced as traumatic, contributing to increased fear and anxiety.
Real-life Experiences of Immigration Anxiety from My Clients
- One of my clients expressed increased anxiety because his mother, who migrated 30+ years ago and is now a U.S citizen, was leaving the country for a relative’s funeral. We addressed this topic in several sessions until she returned home. His primary concern was her not being allowed back into the country although there was no reason to support this.
- Similarly, another client was anxious and upset with her father for risking leaving the country for a conference. She attempted to convince him not to go and was unsuccessful. She feared that he was putting himself on the radar, despite his legal status.
- Recently, a client (U.S citizen, African descent) reported heightened anxiety when she saw officers surrounding her car at the airport which she mistakenly left running because of her excitement to meet her infant niece. Her automatic thought was “it’s ICE”. When she got to the car she realized they were local police and although they were pleasant, the anxiety lingered after.
I continue to hear from individuals of varying immigration statuses about their growing concerns regarding anti-immigration and anti-minority sentiments because of their accents, languages spoken, and skin color. This puts clients at risk of experiencing anxiety, depression, stress, and feelings of hopelessness.
Clinical Considerations and Interventions for Immigration Anxiety
Sessions addressing current political events can be difficult for both clients and clinicians. It is particularly challenging when these events cause anxiety as there may be differing views on the topic and no generally agreed upon solution. As a result, fear of political topics can create hesitance to discuss anxiety related to immigration.
The following are treatment considerations when working with clients presenting with anti-immigration anxiety:
- Validate: Our approach should begin with thoughtful validation, regardless of whether we assess the threat as objectively likely. This validation should occur without reinforcing the anxiety, without suggesting that they should be fearful. We are validating the anxiety tied to the unknown and the anxiety of the feared outcome.
- Identify thoughts: It is not helpful to assume or generalize their anxious thoughts as different individuals may have different fears specific to their background. This can vary from thoughts of being mistakenly detained for a long period, being separated from loved ones, being sent to a country that no longer feels familiar, and even being physically harmed. If they struggle to identify the thought, consider helping by eliciting the thought.
- Agree on the Goal: To focus on the anxious experience and introduce a technique, you can say something like, “I can see that these thoughts are very difficult for you. Do you think it might help to try decreasing the distress you are experiencing?” This might seem obvious, however, losing the hypervigilance that accompanies their distress can feel too risky and cause feelings of powerlessness.
Collaborate on technique(s): Ask the client if they believe it would be better for them to explore the helpfulness of focusing on the thought right now, problem-solve to decrease the possible likelihood of the feared outcome, create a plan if the feared outcome occurred, or manage their related worry. If you believe one approach could be more helpful, you may suggest this and ask for agreement before proceeding. Avoid exploring the likely outcome as we do not know the likelihood that your client or their family member could have a poor interaction with the immigration system.
a. To explore the utility of the thought that is or is believed to be accurate, consider having the client explore what happens when they experience the thought they identified. More times than not, clients can see how their unhelpful thoughts create unpleasant emotions, which influence their behaviors, reinforce their thoughts, and ultimately keep them in a place they do not want to be.
b. There are occasions where clients convince themselves that their thoughts help them to be prepared. It can be beneficial to explore the difference between worry and planning. When psychoeducation about worry is not enough to manage worry, it can be helpful to introduce scheduling worry time; there are free resources online to facilitate this.
c. If you choose to help the client problem-solve their worst possible outcome, be clear about the problem and what it means to them. Help them create a plan about what they would do. Creating plans can offer clients a sense of control in an uncontrollable situation.
d. If the client is experiencing a significant physiological response, it may be best to start with working on mindfulness of their emotions or other relaxation skills.
- Religious/Cultural considerations: For many clients who are both immigrants and racial/ethnic minorities, non-traditional approaches of helping them lean on their faith and utilize support within their shared communities can be most helpful. If you are unsure where to start, ask, “do you think there is a way your faith can help you during this time?” and “are there religious or community supports you believe would be helpful to engage with?”
Conclusion
Experiences of immigrant anxiety are growing and are not limited to individuals of a specific immigration status. Fortunately, we can begin to address this experience with cognitive techniques. Regardless of the approaches used, collaboration and following the lead of the client is essential in ensuring that they maintain their agency in a time where this may feel threatened.
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