Native American Mental Health, Alcoholism, and Access to Care

Introduction

One of the most disturbing aspects of life as a Native American is the fact that this population suffers from historical trauma — the trauma of having lost their land, their way of life, and essentially their freedom to self-determination when the American colonies began to assert themselves and push Native peoples off their land. The Cherokee were expelled from the East by the Indian Removal Act in the 19th century, and countless more were slaughtered in brutal territorial wars of conquest as the US expanded westward. Historical trauma is a real struggle for this invisible minority (Brown-Rice). It has led to a deterioration of mental health among Native Americans, who now suffer from alcoholism, substance abuse, and a lack of access to adequate mental health care (Hartmann and Gone).

Compared to other ethnicities and racial groups, Native Americans experience higher lifetime substance abuse rates. There are many factors that contribute to this statistic: historical trauma, violence, unemployment, and low levels of educational attainment. At the end of the day, it is evident that Native Americans have been marginalized for centuries — and such marginalization denies them equal opportunity and boxes them into a way of life that is psychologically dehumanizing ("Substance Abuse Statistics for Native Americans"). Famous Native American novelist Sherman Alexie writes about what it is like to be an alcoholic Native American in his novel Flight. He also describes what it is like to be, essentially, an orphan — which is what many indigenous people feel themselves to be in white America, where Uncle Sam is the symbol of patriotism. There is literally no representation of Native American greatness in the mainstream consciousness. It should not be surprising, therefore, to find that this invisible population suffers from alcoholism and poor mental health more than any other population.

Works Cited

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Alexie, Sherman. Flight: A Novel. Black Cat, 2007.

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Garrett, Mario D., et al. "Mental Health Disorders Among an Invisible Minority: Depression and Dementia Among American Indian and Alaska Native Elders." The Gerontologist, vol. 55, no. 2, 2015, pp. 227–236.

Hartmann, William E., and Joseph P. Gone. "Psychological-Mindedness and American Indian Historical Trauma: Interviews with Service Providers from a Great Plains Reservation." American Journal of Community Psychology, vol. 57, no. 1–2, 2016, pp. 229–242.

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"Substance Abuse Statistics for Native Americans." Edited by Michael Kaliszewski, American Addiction Centers, Feb. 2020, americanaddictioncenters.org/rehabguide/addiction-statistics/native-americans.

Tachine, Amanda R., Nolan L. Cabrera, and Eliza Yellow Bird. "Home Away from Home: Native American Students' Sense of Belonging During Their First Year in College." The Journal of Higher Education, vol. 88, no. 5, 2017, pp. 785–807.