ASL Mental Health Services Now Being Offered in Meriden, CT!

The Deaf community faces unique challenges when it comes to mental health, and one of the most significant barriers is communication, which can prevent someone from receiving an accurate diagnosis as well as effective treatment.

The Community Guidance Clinic for Central Connecticut (formerly the Child Guidance Clinic), located at 384 Pratt Street in Meriden, CT is now offering ASL (American Sign Language) Mental Health Services for the Deaf community thanks to their new clinician, Mariah Santana, who recently joined the agency and specializes in this unique service.

A little about Mariah … Mariah is a biracial (White/Puerto Rican) clinician who obtained her Bachelor's Degree from UConn in Psychology and ASL Interpreting, and later graduated from National University with her Master's Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. She is now a licensed Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT), and is able to see individuals, families, and couples of any age. In the past Mariah has also worked as a substitute teacher at the American School for the Deaf, working with children & adolescents ages 3 to 18 years old.

Mariah explained how she initially became interested in learning sign language during her time at UCONN, “I saw one of my friends using simultaneous communication, signing and speaking at the same time, and when I asked her about it she told me that UConn had American Sign Language classes. I was curious enough to try it out during my sophomore year, and within a month had fallen in love with it and made my minor in ASL Interpreting. A year later UConn became the first college in CT to have majors in ASL for which I was in the first graduating class.”

“During my first semester of learning ASL, I learned so much about the Deaf community, its culture, and the number of barriers they face from discrimination, ableism, and lack of access to resources and information in their native language. I considered my personal experience with therapy and how vital it was for my personal growth and mental well-being, and then thought of all the children, teens, adults, families, and couples who might be interested in accessing services, but don't want to experience therapy through an interpreter or struggle to build rapport with a therapist who can’t communicate with them directly.”

Mariah’s eager to spread the word throughout the community so people can utilize her services and receive the mental health care they need, “My newfound knowledge of the Deaf community's struggles with accessible mental health services was the catalyst for my desire to join the handful of other clinicians in the state who sign and work with the Deaf population of CT. I want to be able to provide therapy services to my clients using their native language of ASL, and I welcome anyone who is involved in the Deaf community who’s looking to obtain the services they've always wanted and needed, but have struggled to find.”

If you or someone you know needs services, please visit our website at www.ccgccentralct.org, click the ‘Contact’ tab to submit your info, and let us know you’re requesting ASL Therapy Services to be contacted by a member of our team!