Black Mental Wellness® Day
Black Mental Wellness Day is a transformative and empowering virtual event dedicated to Black Mental Health and Wellness. In recognition of the unique mental health challenges faced by the Black community, this day has been curated as a day filled with engaging workshops and educational sessions aimed at promoting mental well-being and personal growth.
Black Mental Wellness Day features insightful discussions, workshops, and resources to support your well-being.
3 hours of continuing education is available. Black Mental Wellness is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Black Mental Wellness maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
For additional information on continuing education, please contact: Dr. Danielle Busby at DrBusby@BlackMentalWellness.com.
Sponsors
Black Mental Wellness ® Day offers an excellent opportunity to increase the visibility of your organization and products to our diverse community of experts and individuals.
For more information email:
DrCunningham@BlackMentalWellness.com
2026 Workshops
The Mental Load of Always Being the Strong One
Speakers:
-
Shawnti Refuge, MS, MCC, CMHC
Session Description: Black individuals across identities often experience chronic psychological and emotional strain due to culturally reinforced expectations of resilience, responsibility, and emotional suppression. This presentation examines how the “strong one” role contributes to stress, burnout, and internalized pressure, and how these patterns impact mental and emotional well-being. Participants will engage in reflective practices and evidence-informed strategies, including guided journaling, to support self-awareness, emotional processing, and sustainable coping. Bio: Shawnti Refuge is a Master Certified Mental Health Coach, author, and mental health advocate whose work centers on emotional wellness, burnout, and the mental load carried within Black communities. She is the founder of Shawnti Refuge Journals and the host of The Quiet As Kept Podcast, where she uses guided journaling, storytelling, and culturally responsive education to support healing, self-awareness, and emotional release. Through workshops, support groups, and community-based programming, Shawnti creates spaces that invite honesty, reflection, and sustainable healing beyond survival mode. Learning Objectives By the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: Identify at least three ways the “strong one” role manifests within Black communities across different identities and life roles. Explain the relationship between chronic emotional suppression, mental load, and increased risk for burnout, anxiety, and emotional exhaustion. Apply reflective and journaling-based strategies to increase emotional awareness and reduce internalized pressure related to strength and responsibility. APA CE: 1
Emotional Expression in Black Men
Speakers:
-
Dr. Alduan Tartt
-
Jamarr (Jay) Wilson
-
Nigel Bucknor, BA, MA, CCC
-
Samori Pennant, LMSW
-
Facilitator: Kirk James, LPC-R, PFA, MHFA
Session Description: This session will focus on emotional expression in Black men, with a focus on enhancing emotional literacy and barriers to emotional expression, including expectations related to spirituality and religion. The speakers will highlight some of the challenges related to emotional freedom in Black men and how emotional expression surfaces in relationships. Speakers will explore how limited access to joy, restrictive norms of Black masculinity, and constrained opportunities for vulnerability shape the emotional experiences and well being of Black men. Learning Objectives: -Identify key barriers to emotional expression in Black men. -Describe the impact of emotional suppression on mental health, relationships, and overall well-being. -Discuss healthy, culturally affirming ways Black men can express emotions without shame or stigma within various relationships. APA CE: 1
Dismantling the Superwoman Syndrome
Speakers:
-
Alana Russaw, PsyD
-
Nichelle Kitt, MSW
-
Osunfemi Wanbi Njeri
-
Taneshia Johnson, MSW
-
Facilitator: Shani Shania
Session Description: This presentation examines the historical origins and psychological foundations of the Superwoman Syndrome as a culturally reinforced survival response among Black women, and its impact on mental, emotional, and physical wellness. Through a trauma-informed and wellness-centered lens, the session explores how chronic over-functioning, emotional suppression, and hyper-independence contribute to burnout and mental health disparities, while also offering strategies to support release, restoration, and sustainable care. Learning Objectives Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to: -Identify the historical, cultural, and systemic factors contributing to the development of the Superwoman Syndrome among Black women. -Analyze the psychological and physiological impacts of chronic stress, emotional suppression, and hyper-independence associated with Superwoman Syndrome. -Apply trauma-informed, culturally responsive, wellness-centered strategies to support in dismantling survival-based coping patterns while promoting sustainable mental health, emotional regulation, and self-compassion. APA CE: 1
Healing Childhood Trauma:
Speakers:
-
DaJonaire Washington, NCSP, Ed.S
Session Description: Learning Objectives: Bio: DaJonaire Washington is a school psychologist, educational advocate, and doctoral candidate in Special Education with a focus on equity-centered leadership and practice. She holds a master’s degree in School Psychology and is the creator of a TEDxBowieStateUniversity talk exploring the hidden impact of implicit bias in education. Her research examines how teacher implicit bias shapes teacher–student relationships and culturally responsive classroom management, particularly for students of color. DaJonaire has worked across K–12 settings as a school psychologist, educator, and advocate, supporting schools in building equitable systems that prioritize relationships, belonging, and student well-being. She is passionate about bridging research and practice, helping educators move beyond awareness toward meaningful, sustainable change in classrooms and schools. APA CE: 1
Previous Black Mental Wellness Days
