Deaf Alcoholics
Why is it so hard for the deaf to deal with
admitting they are alcoholics or
drug addicts which is an impediment for
recovery? Why is it so hard for them to
stay sober once they have achieved it
for a few weeks or months? What do you
think the main reasons are? Having
worked with the deaf for over 30 years I will
try to answer these questions
and research other aspects of the deaf culture,
their mode of communication
and alcoholism. Although it may seem that
communication is an aspect of every
culture, two of the unique features are that
there is not always a common
language between parents and child, and there is no
written form of the
language. Thus, the deaf culture becomes unique, and through
this uniqueness,
they become isolated both from their peers and the hearing
population.
According to Marie Egert Rendon in her article, Deaf and Alcohol
and
Substance Abuse "Substance abuse is a sensitive issue about which the
deaf
community does not yet feel comfortable talking. For many with in the
community,
it remains a moral issue; the denial of pathological drinking is
very strong."
(Rendon, 1992) Isolation is a well-known stressor and the
denial of alcohol use
in the family unit has long existed in the deaf
community. The family structures
and the cohesiveness of the family in their
form of communications is a factor
that must be considered. The deaf have had
limited or strained access to their
own cultural rights. They have been
denied the right to their own language,
their own community groups, and even
have limited access to the majority culture
because of communication
barriers. Because of the sense of oppression, isolation
has perpetuated the
denial process. In addition, language, family, friendships,
and services
available to the deaf culture and native language have many
innuendoes.
"Since the deaf culture is built around the language that the deaf
people
use- American Sign Language (ASL)- the culture is rarely accessible to
the
hearing world, due to the difficulty of mastering ASL." (Rendon,
1992)
Family communication includes several dimensions, among them the
mode, content
and structure of communication. Mode of communication is
frequently raised in
discussions about communication within families having a
deaf member.
Communication mode use refers to the use of speech, sign, or
some other method
of face- to-face communication. (Kluwin, 1990) Because of
these barriers and
other misunderstandings, alcohol and drug recovery
treatment programs remain
inaccessible. In addition to the recognition of
communication difficulties,
alcohol and drug service providers need to be
acknowledgeable about deaf
cultures, sensitive to the deaf issues, and aware
of preferred methods of
communication, including the use of interpreters,
both in treatment programs and
in recovery groups. (Luetke-Stahlman, 1994)
One of the biggest problems is that
the deaf do not have sobriety long enough
to be of help to other deaf people.
Although that is beginning to change
most are still dependent on the hearing to
a degree. As the years go on the
length of sobriety continues to grow. The
problem of alcohol and substance
abuse in the deaf community is a reality. The
culture of the deaf often
provides a shelter and a barrier to recovery by
encouraging isolation and
denial. Little by little, information and education
are bringing members of
the deaf community into treatment programs and, thus,
the cycle of repeated
alcoholism can be broken. There are treatment programs
that are specifically
designed to serve the deaf, and there are programs that
have some services
for the deaf. However, this breaking down of the isolation
and denial
barriers requires continued efforts on behalf of a community
already
stretched to its limits. The deaf alcoholic or drug-addicted
individual can
achieve recovery only when advocacy promoting and achieving
accessibility is the
reality and not the rarity. When the deaf community
openly admits that
regardless of culture, race, or creed, alcoholism and drug
abuse affects all
cultures and that recovery is a right for everyone. It is
not a stigma, and it
is definitely not a moral issue. This is a lesson we
need to be aware of and be
of service to the deaf population. There are many
more AA groups in the greater
Los Angeles area today than ever before.
The deaf community is still somewhat
untrusting of the hearing community even
in the closeness of the Alcoholic
Anonymous home groups. It has been my
experience that the deaf meeting that have
been held for the deaf only have
not faired as well as the meeting with more
sobriety and with a regular ASL
interpreter. There are still not enough meetings
as the hearing, but great
improvements are being made.
Bibliography
Rendon, M., (1992) Deaf
Culture and Alcohol and Substance Abuse. Journal of
Substance Abuse. Vol.
9, pp. 103-110 Kluwin, T., (1990) Communication in
Fostering Cohesion in
Families with the Deaf. Journal of American Annals of the
Deaf. Vol. 139,
No. 3 Luetke-Stahlman, B. (1994) Social Interactions with Regard
to Students
who are Deaf. Journal of the American Annals of the Deaf. Vol. 140,
No. 3
Duff, J., (1981) The Truth About Drugs. Los Angeles, California:
Bridge
Publications,
Inc.