By Lindsey Honchar
An Analysis of Drug and Alcohol Use in The
Deaf Community
Form a fist with your thumb laying flat against your index finger:
(A)
Then slide the thumb across your fingers (S).
To finish, pull your thumb out and outstretch your index finger (L).
ASL (American Sign Language) is used by a large portion of Americans to
communicate with the Hard of hearing or Deaf community.
Though the use of ASL is widespread in America, there is still a large portion
of the country who can neither understand nor use the language. The frustration
and isolation caused by the language barrier on deaf children can have an effect
on the psyche, especially for those in adolescence. the stress caused by the
barrier, leads to the societal pressure on the Deaf to get cochlear implants.
Implants are seen by the hearing society as the only way to live, and it's
common among members of the Deaf community to have no interest in getting
implants and many are living perfectly happy lives without them . Due to the
isolation the Deaf feel from a world that is inflexible to those who differ from
the "norm", members of the Deaf community are more likely than a hearing person
to use drugs and alcohol to self-medicate feelings of isolation and stay
addicted because of the lack of facilities in which they can receive proper
help.
Deaf children who are born to hearing parents who neglect to learn or teach
their child sign language or PSE often feel isolated and are likely to
experience mental illness and addiction in the future. 90% deaf children are
born to hearing parents (Guthmann). As a result there is a lack of ability to
communicate from child to parent unless a common language is learned. Parents
have the option to teach themselves sign language and then, teach the child.
Unfortunately parents often refuse to teach themselves as well as the child.
This leaves the child with the lack of ability to learn a language be that
verbal or physical and can force illiteracy upon the child. In a study done in
1998 a deaf child received no formal education and had no access to learn ASL.
Once 15 years old he was given hearing aids and was taught Spanish. He was only
able to use it verbally and even then" he demonstrated severe deficits in verbal
comprehension and expression"(Williamson) . Society can often become lazy and
excluding feeling no need to truly communicate with the Deaf (Oralism) and this
can often make members of the Deaf community feel isolated and alone. The
feeling of isolation often leads to depression and other mental illnesses that
can additionally lead to heavy drug abuse.
Stress causes members of the Deaf community to self medicate through drugs or
alcohol in hopes of alleviating feelings of isolation . Over 600,000 people
experience both being deaf and alcoholism (Guthmann). The physiological
connection with isolation by speech, drug abuse and alcoholism is connected by
depression. "Social disconnectedness … like a small social network, infrequent
social interaction, and lack of participation in social activities and groups."
(Cornwell) the social disconnect someone can feel when it's as if the world
doesn't speak the same language as you. Additionally feelings of isolation due
to a mainly unintentional exclusion from some social activities and interactions
it can lead to "a robust association between loneliness and worse health, … and
depression." (Cornwell)
Deaf people who are given a sentence and or placed into rehabilitation due to
drug abuse or alcoholism, often cannot receive proper assistance during both the
trial and the preceding treatment facility or whilst in incineration. A Deaf
woman in court experienced a deep injustice during her trial. They forced her to
keep the cuffs on her person so she was unable to communicate, she was not given
access to a translator for 24 hour period of time, and she was left to sit in
jail overnight simply because there was no one to translate (Callis). The
injustice she experienced is not uncommon; often police cannot find access to a
translator thought according to the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) it is
demanded they find one. After a trial you can be placed into rehabilitation or
incarceration. Re programs often do not accommodate properly to those who are
deaf. Some have a budget issue not allowing for assistance by translator " …
provide a few hours of interpreting services per day" (Koster). Being an
inconvenience not having an interpreter on hand already, it can become
dangerous. Deaf people who used drugs and or alcohol to escape from feelings of
exclusions, the lack of a translator can make the feeling much worse. Treatment
facilities can be a source of stress for someone recovering as there is no
guarantee they will have access to a translator or any ability to communicate.
They may not be able to receive the same experience of treatment as the rest of
those in the facility as they will lack access to communication through all
hours of the day (Koster).
The members of the Deaf community are more likely in day to day life to
experience feelings of isolation of stress. This causes those experiencing
hearing loss to often self-medicate and become addicted to drugs and alcohol. It
is essential that deaf children learn ASL, and a necessity for the child to
acclimate to a hearing and literary world. Neglectful parents can leave a deaf
child feeling completely isolated leading to mental illness. Those who suffer
from mental illness are more likely to use drugs and hearing parents of deaf
children are less likely to notice as deaf children are likely to be more
secluded. Those who do end up in rehabilitation often face issues with cost and
availability. It is notably common for the Deaf community to fall into a drug
abuse and alcoholism and can be a vicious cycle if the recipient of treatment at
a facility experiences the same feeling of exclusion that lead them to drug
abuse. Hearing people who work in the court systems and rehabilitation
facilities can assisting the Deaf by learning sign language and making the
language barrier disappear. Deaf people deserve just as many opportunities and
easy access to help and rehabilitation as those who are hearing.
Word Cited:
Callis, Lydia L. "How the Criminal Justice System Fails the Deaf
Community." The Huffington Post . TheHuffingtonPost.com, 10 Nov. 2014. Web. 26
Apr. 2017. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lydia-l-callis/post_8582_b_6127898.html>
Cornwell, Erin York, and LINDA J. WAITE. "Social Disconnectedness, Perceived
Isolation, and Health among Older Adults." Journal of Health and Social Behavior
. U.S. National Library of Medicine, Mar. 2009. Web. 10 Apr. 2017. <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2756979/>
Guthmann, Debra, Ed.D, and Vicki Graham, B.S. "Substance Abuse: A Hidden Problem
Within the D/deaf and Hard of Hearing Communities". Minnesota Chemical
Dependency Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals, 1994. Web. 04 Apr.
2017. <http://www.mncddeaf.org/articles/hidden_ad.htm>
Koster, Tracy Bell, MSW & MS, and Debra Guthmann, Ed.D. "Substance Abuse and the
Deaf/HH Community." Substance Abuse and the Deaf/HH Community . Minnesota
Chemical Dependency Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals, 1994. Web.
04 Apr. 2017. <http://www.mncddeaf.org/articles/substance_abuse_ad.htm>
Williamson, Graham. "Is There a Critical Period?" SLT Info . © SLTinfo, 16 Jan.
2004. Web. 04 May 2017. <http://www.sltinfo.com/critical-period-for-language-development/>
Notes:
Also see:
►
Drug Awareness and Treatment Services for the Deaf in a Hearing World
►
Drug Abuse and Deaf People
►
Substance Abuse |
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