Services For The Hearing Impaired in Montana

While it can be difficult to find facilities that are accessible to those who are blind or deaf in Montana, there are rehab centers that can provide needed accessibility and that are familiar with some of the particular concerns and needs of those with sensory disabilities who need substance abuse treatment.

Deafness, Blindness, and Substance Abuse

A recent study from Disability and Health Journal indicates that people with disabilities are more likely than the general population to have issues with substance abuse and addiction. Specifically, about 40 percent of the population that has some form of disability also struggles with drug or alcohol use.

Addiction and Disability

People who have sensory disabilities, such as being deaf or blind most times slip into great frustration. Often, the frustrations of these conditions can leave a person feeling depressed, anxious, and isolated from the rest of the world. For many people with these emotional issues, drugs or alcohol can be a way to numb negative feelings or create a false feeling of euphoria. This self-medication, in turn, can lead to addiction.

While this is not a new idea, the understanding of substance abuse in the deaf and blind communities has lagged behind that of the general population. The result of this is that services for people with sensory disabilities and substance abuse problems are less than ideal.

Drug Treatment Options for Hearing or Visual Impairments

On the surface, traditional addiction treatment is no less effective for people with sensory disabilities than for the general population. The treatment types do not in themselves provide a barrier to treatment for people who are deaf or blind; they include:

• Therapy of various types
• Peer support or 12-Step program involvement
• Medication, if needed
• Education
• Exercise and activity programs

On the other hand, the way these programs are offered can present an obstacle to people who can't see or hear, as clarified by information from the Rochester Institute of Technology. Visual presentations and reading materials are not always accessible to the blind, and the therapy, conversations, and other sound-based ways of conveying information isolate those who are deaf from important treatment elements.

Because of this, there were nearly no treatment options for people who are blind or deaf in the past, and current options are still more limited than they should be for this population.

Deafness: Concerns When Seeking Treatment

Along the same idea, a common concern for deaf people who need substance abuse treatment is that the treatment center won't have the upgrades necessary to provide full accessibility to deaf people. Even with those who do provide some accommodation, fulltime sign language interpreters are not usually available.

Generally, less than fulltime is not enough, because so much of the day in residential treatment is focused around presentations, work with psychiatric personnel, and interactions with the other residents in the program. Without fulltime interpretation, this can mean that the deaf individual will miss out on much of the needed interaction and information. The result is that the person can become frustrated and lose motivation.

Treatment centers that provide services for people with hearing problems can make up this lack by providing access to interpreters on an as-needed basis for deaf clients. Another option, as described by the American Psychological Association, would be to offer video presentations by experts who use sign language. However, this does not make up for the interaction with treatment center staff and peer group members that provides a central source of motivation for people in treatment.

Getting Help

As a hearing impaired person with an addiction, it may seem as though the mountain you have to climb is too formidable. However, this is not true. Any of the facilities in Montana will be happy to help you if you reach out to them.