Substance Abuse among Native Americans

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Recommended: Essay Alcohol use among Native American populations: historical perspectives, prevalence,

Reflecting on the many western movies of my youth, it can be clearly recalled that the Native Americans were either scalping Euro Americans or getting sloppy drunks so they could not function physically and/or mentally. This abuse of alcohol and, in general, acceptance of drunken behavior beyond recollection of actions or knowledge of one’s environment, was widely accepted as the norm by Euro Americans outside of the Native American world and far from the arid, treeless reservations. Although tribes vacillate with regard to the use of alcohol and drugs, substance dependence is one of the principal sources of health problems facing Native Americans. As the graph below shows, there is a disparity in abuse. How did this substance abuse become a part of the Native American society? The myth of drunken wild “injuns” on the loose more than likely promoted the ethereal beliefs surrounding substance abuse. Although in actuality, it was the abrupt changes that Euro Americans forcibly imposed on Native Americans by taking their lands, killing off their food supply, the buffalo, and subjecting them to compulsory acceptance of “the white man’s ways” through relocation, re-education and pogroms. These factors along with other variables such as abuse of nonmedical prescription drugs fanned the abuse of substance among Native American tribes as shown by the demographics below. As a result, living up to worthy expectations also can be difficult for anyone, especially in the modern world, where most people in American society have experimented with alcohol and drugs. Many Native Americans, however, face additional perils that increase their risk for alcohol and substance abuse; for example; cultural conflict, post-traumatic stres... ... middle of paper ... ...tance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality viewed April 20, 2014 http://www.samhsa.gov/data/nsduh/2k10MH_Findings/gifs/Fig4-6.gif Substance Use is Widespread among Native American, White and Mixed-Race Youth. (November 8, 2011) JAMA Viewed on April 18, 2014 http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1107330 Substance Use among American Indian or Alaska Native Adults (June 24, 2010). National Survey on Drug Use and Health Report Viewed on April 19, 2014 at http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2k10/182/AmericanIndian.htm The Wellbriety Movement Partners; White Bison, Inc. (2014) Viewed on April 20, 2014 at http://whitebison.org/index.php Winkel, Bethany. Alcohol Abuse among Native Americans (December 2010) Viewed April 17, 2014 at http://www.treatmentsolutions.com/alcohol-abuse-among-native-americans/

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