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Mental Illness In Native Americans

564 Words3 Pages

Growing up off reservation or native community has ostracized me from ancestral background and the core part of who I am, but I do know their struggle. The poverty, lack of education and worse; the mental illness. Oddly enough it affects first nation people whether they are in a reservation or not. In my experience, mental illness is not treated properly or acknowledged in time. It leads to substance abuse for small fixes-speed instead of adderall for severe ADHD- these harm not only the person who is taking them but also the people around them. Researchers have found that Native Americans experience almost 2 times more psychological stress than any other demographic. It’s not hard to see why as Native Americans abuse substances like alcohol …show more content…

To bridge the gap, the underlying mental illnesses that are not addressed cause more significant damage to others which results in more mental illnesses. The access to care and treatment is limited to Natives which is what I want to change. Currently, most Native Americans cannot seek adequate treatment due to economic barriers, they cannot pay for doctors or subsequent pills. Additionally, access to mental health services can be limited due to location, health insurance and the lack of awareness. By going to Dartmouth I hope to expand these ideas of mental health awareness because it’s results could be an increase in Natives finishing high school and college creating a more educated generation. The Dartmouth Native American Program is one that aims to assist students in many areas of growth including personal, social, and intellectual; all of which can be greatly affected by an undiagnosed and untreated mental illness. My goal is to collaborate with the extensive network of Natives attending Dartmouth as well as faculty to learn more about brain sciences and how to raise awareness for mental health so that these are addressed …show more content…

A healthy mind should not be a privilege. How are Native Americans expected to thrive when they live in the type of environment that does not place importance on individual security and health. Some of the most common inflictions are ADHD, Depression, Anxiety, and PTSD. To combat these in their own ways they turn to Alcoholism and the abuse of drugs. I firmly believe that with the right kind of medical help, the native community will thrive and prosper, rates of crime will go down as well as domestic abuse. By pairing with Dartmouth and the resources given to students it is not beyond the realm of opportunity to provide adequate research into these types of programs and to get a program of our own running. Dartmouth strives to educate Native Americans but often they are held back with the lowest graduation rates and the lowest average scores on standardized testing and it is known that mental illness affects performance in school. These undiagnosed and untreated illnesses hinder a child’s ability to learn and grow. It’s time for proper care for my

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