Drug related problems are the major issues that many people are grappling with in an attempt to get out of this bondage. Most people can not work unless they are under the influence of a drug. Some people have to take a glass of alcohol to gain confidence. Others have to take a smoke to avoid experiencing headaches.

In all the corners of the world, the problem of drug and substance abuse is so prevalent among the children, the youths and the old. The most abused drug though in most of the societies is alcohol. It is taken in many instances as a way of celebrating certain achievement or when having merry. Most of the time it is taken as a complement to meal.

The following discussion however will focus on the abuse of alcohol and other drugs among the Native Americans.

Purpose of the paper
The main purpose of this paper is look at the whole issue of drug and alcohol abuse among the Native Americans. It is going to be focusing on the problems that occur as a result of misusing alcohol and other drugs. It will focus on the addiction, the withdrawal effects of the drugs and eventually look at the possible treatments that can be used to help those that are already affected by the whole issue of drugs. It will also seek to provide certain measures that should be employed so as to prevent those that are already not using the drugs against recruitment. Finally, the paper will also focus on the group of the people on the society who are the most affected by the drugs and alcohol abuse and for our case we focus on the Native American youths.

Discussion
Prevalence of alcohol among the Native American youths
Drug and alcohol abuse is so prevalent among the young people especially those high schools and the campus. This is the reason why I have chosen to choose this particular population so that we can see how the alcohol related problems are having negative impacts on this very important population in the society.

Most Native American youths will involve themselves in drugs to overcome the stresses of life, inferiority complex and cultural conflict ( Native American Development Corporation, 1990a).It is the study that was carried on the effect of alcohol on Native young people in America. The results of the study indicated that underage drinking was on the rise with people aged between 12-20 years accounting for more than ten million drinkers in America (National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 1999). The report continues to indicate that out of this, about twenty percent engage in binge drinking and about six percent are heavy drinkers.

The research indicates that the average age of drinking among the young people is thirteen years. About eighty percent of the high school going students have engaged in drinking with about sixty two percent getting drunk and becoming a nuisance to the rest of the members of the society (Monitoring the Future Study, 2000). The girls according to the study have not been speared either. The percentage of those who abuse the alcohol has been rising with the findings indicating a thirty one percent rise in the 1990s from seven percent in the 60s (Substance Abuse Among Women in the U.S. 1996). The study continues to reveal that since many teenager are engaged in binge drinking and sometimes heavy drinking, about sixteen percent of these have had a black out. It is reported that most of them could not tell what had happened to them the previous time as they had lost their conscience (Teen Alcohol Consumption 1998). The act of drinking has been linked to the easy accessibility of alcohol among the young people. It has been noted that young people will purchase alcohol without any one considering that they are underage. This has been seen as the main reason that is encouraging the escalation of this problem (Waggener, Alexander C, 2000).

This study also focused on the devastating effects of the alcohol related problems on the young people and came with a number of them. One of the shocking consequences is that alcohol has been identified as one of the four causes of deaths among the young people who are aged between ten to around twenty four (. Kann, L., et al. 2000). Others that were identified as the causes of death were accidents caused in many instances by the drivers who are under the influence of alcohol, the other one is suicide which is associated with lack of strong social ties which leads to the feeling of hopelessness. Drinking of alcohol and other drugs causes some one to lose many important friends and this feeling of loneliness and the fact that some have been deprived of the love of their parents makes most of them opt to commit suicide.

It has been indicated that those who begin taking alcohol at the age of fifteen years will be at a higher risk of developing drug dependency than their counterparts who begin at a later age of about twenty one (Grant, B.F.,  Dawson, D. A. 1997). Therefore, this shows that the best way to prevent the effect of drug dependence is to ensure that the younger generation is not exposed to early drinking as this will lead to devastating problems in future.

There are also greater chances of the people who begin drinking at the age of fifteen years to use other illicit drugs. The percentage of these young people has been estimated to be sixty two. Most of them are seven times likely to use illicit drugs, with over twenty two percent using marijuana and more than fifty percent using cocaine (Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, 1999). This is a number that is way higher than the number of those who do not engage in early use of alcohol.

The possibility of a teenager who is under the influence of alcohol to engage in irresponsible sexual activities has also been found to be very high. The research indicates that about thirty nine percent of the teens who are sexually active have had sexual intercourse with four or more multiple partners (Costs of Underage Drinking, 1999). This is dangerous since it may expose them to higher risks of acquiring sexually transmitted infection since in many times this people might ignore the importance of having to use protection when having sex. However, those young people who delay drinking have again been found to have fewer chances of experiencing such problems.

The cost of underage drinking in America has been soaring. The study shows that it costs the government about fifty billion dollars annually on the problems associated with Underage Drinking 1999). This is a lot of cost and such huge figure should be used in other sectors of the economy that are satisfying to all the citizens. This tells us that there is a great need to address this problem otherwise many nations will be losing their national income on matters related to drugs rather than focusing on the most important issues.

The problems that many young people are also contending with include the sexual assaults and acquaintance or date rape cases which are on the rise among the young. The research indicates that the two evils are propagated by the use of alcohols (Youth and Alcohol, 1992). It has been found that many ladies have reported to have been raped by their boy friends when they were having the date.
The last finding of the research indicates that in 1999, about twenty one percent of the accidents that were reported involved drivers who were aged fifteen and twenty (Traffic Safety Facts, 1999). Many of the lives of young people are lost annually due to the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. It is therefore necessary that the relevant authority take measures aimed at address these problems.
Effects of drugs and alcohol among the Native American young generation
The effects of alcohol and other related drugs on the life of the young people affect their social life, their cognitive abilities and their emotional lives. In other words it affects all the sectors of their lives and this is very dangerous. We focus on the Nancys story as a guide to make a generalized situation of the Native American youths.

One of the major effects of drugs and alcohol is that it may cause relational breakdown. As the young person begins to use the alcohol, this will begin having impact on their behavior. This on the other hand will affect the way they will begin conducting themselves in the presence of their friends. Since most of them may lose their judgment and the power of decision making, they may end up doing acts that are quite embarrassing. For this reason, they will be avoided by their friends who will not want to suffer the embarrassment.

The other effect of drugs among the young people is the one we have briefly seen in our literature review above. As we saw, the influence of alcohol will make the young people become irresponsible and may indulge themselves in behaviors that are life threatening. As we saw in Nancys case, she got drunk one day causing an accident that harmed other people and herself. They may also have unprotected sex with multiple partners and this poses great threat to their lives and lives of others. Even as many organizations and governments are trying to come with various measures meant at mitigating the spread of sexually transmitted infections, this may not be fully achieved if the problem of the drugs and alcohol prevalence among the young is not addressed. The spread of HIV and AIDs will therefore be soaring among the young generation if this trend is not checked.

The other effect of using alcohol especially at an early age is that it may lead someone to using other dangerous drugs such as the cocaine and the heroine (Monitoring the Future Study, 2000) As we saw in the hypothetical story above, Nancy used marijuana while she was fifteen years but later on she is observed to use the alcohol. This is because as one continues using a certain drug for a long time they become used to it until it has no satisfying effects as they would want. This will therefore make them decide to use a harder drug that will keep them high. This poses a lot of threat to them as they become so intoxicated to the point of losing their consciousness and the result is medication or being taken to the rehabilitation centers.

Another effect is that it may lead to violent behaviors that may be life threatening causing injury to others. In our hypothetical story above, Nancy has been hurt by her husband who causes some head injuries to her as he hit her with a hammer. This culminated into him being taken to the prison. Domestic violence is also high in many other homes where one or both of the partners are using alcohol. These leads to many unwanted expenses such as the medical bills and also payment of the destroyed properties. As we have seen in the case above, the relationship between the husband and the wife is also broken and they live in their different worlds. This challenges the need for marriage in the first place.

The next effect as we have seen in the case of Nancy is the possibility of being involved in accidents. We are told that she was driving under the influence of alcohol which led to the unexpected death of two people. Even by going by the research that we saw earlier, the number of accident that is caused by people who work under the influence of alcohol is on the rise. This could be attributed to the fact that some of them drink to the point of not being in control of themselves such that they cannot control the vehicle effectively. This does not affect only them but other people also who could be pedestrians or other drivers. Those taking other drugs such as the marijuana will find themselves hallucinating and they forget that they are on the road. This poses greater challenge to their lives.

The next effect is that it may lead to robbery in order for these drug users to acquire the money that is meant to meet their daily needs. Some of these drugs are quite expensive. Since these drug users have developed some kind of dependency on them, they cannot do without having to test them. As we saw earlier, some of these people do not work yet they want to maintain their high state. This means that they have o look for a way of maintaining this state. In most of the time, they will cause disharmony in the society by mugging people and taking their money so as to be in a position to acquire the drugs.

Impact of drugs and alcohol on the Native Americans
According to the information brief on the illicit drugs and the youth, the impact of drug is very great on the parents, school, the community and the government                     (judgment.govndic).

According to that research, the trend of drug use among the young people is on the rise and this is affecting not only them but the whole society in general. The issue of the drug use among the young is therefore one that needs to be taken seriously by all the necessary authority and not left to the government alone or the parents but the community in general should be involved in rooting out this evil.

The impact of the use of drugs among the young is what we saw earlier. The government of America spends about fifty billion dollars annually in treating the problems that arise as a result to the involvement of drugs (Grant, B.F.,  Dawson, D. A. 1997). This is a lot of money that is supposed to be used in other helpful projects that are meant to stimulate development. However, each year the government has been required to set aside this huge amount to deal with this problems. This will mean that the people will be expected to pay higher taxes so that such expenses can be met.

The other place that feels the impact is the hospitals that are required to nurse the injuries that this people may acquire in case of accidents. As we saw, the numbers of accidents are so high that there are so many young people that have to be taken to the hospital. As a result, this makes the facilities in the hospital get exhausted. The nurses are put under pressure and therefore the government on the other hand must continue employing more and more to cater for this problems.

On the other side, young people have been known to vandalize the properties when they are drunk and when they are under the influence of drugs. This has been witnessed in many high schools and even campuses. The students will just go into riot citing many unfounded reasons for their decision but in the real sense, the root cause of this n many times is the influence of the drugs. When such evils take place, they break properties or burn them. The cost of this is incurred by the government together with the parents therefore continuing to put more and more pressure on the society.

The other impact has been felt on the side of the parents. They are the people who have to be keeping the eye on their children and they expect them to be responsible people in the society. However, in many cases this does not happen. These youths may never live their lives to full potentials. This is one of the problems that many of the parents are grappling with. Each parent would want to see their children succeed in their academic work, social life and generally lead a responsible life.

In our earlier study, we saw very young teenagers being involved in drinking of alcohol. This leads us to ask ourselves such as who provides the money that they have to use on the drugs bearing in mind that most of them are not employed. This means that they must be getting this money from their parents. However, it will be so hard for a parent to give money to their children for buying drugs. Since they have to keep on using these drugs as we saw earlier, this means that they must come up with means of acquiring them. One of the ways is to steal from their parents. They may take the cash that their parents keep in the house meant for other expenses.

The other possible mean of getting this cash will be through diverting money meant for other expenses and using it to fulfill their need for the drugs. For instance, a student may be given some cash meant for buying themselves cloths. They will however not do so but will take this money and use it.

The other impact is found at the society in general. This is the people that surround and live among the young people. Rape cases at times are associated with the use of drugs. This poses a great threat to the society in general and tries to avoid any contact with these youths as they can. Date rapes are also reported to be on high, but this mostly goes unreported. This is because it is hard for one to prove that the one that they love actually raped them. People under the influence of drugs might not reason with their partners. When they say no, these people under the influence of alcohol may interpret it as meaning yes. In many times, the will be forcing themselves and would not listen to their partners.

As we saw earlier on, the society also plays a part in influencing the young people to use the drugs (Grant, B.F.,  Dawson, D. A. 1997).This is demonstrated by the fact that these people purchase the drugs from shops that are owned by mature people who should discourage this kind of behavior. Therefore it is up to the society to decide also whether they want a drug free society or they want to continue contending with great risks that will come as a result of drug abuse among the young.

Treatment Options for Targeted Population
It has been found so challenging to treat people with drug problems. This is because in many times they are not willing to own that they have a problem. Among the Native Americans, the definition of alcohol makes the whole difference since some do not perceive it as a problem (Department of Educations Drug-Free Schools and Communities 1988-90). The first step in many times of helping a person with a problem is for them to agree that they have a problem which needs intervention.

There are however several ways that have been suggested that are aimed at helping these addicted people come out of such situations. One of those ways is for the young person to get involved in certain other distracting activities. Such activities will include going out for the exercises such as jogging, watching of movies, and reading interesting novels. These activities are meant to keep them away from the thought of drugs.

The other factor to treating this problem is to break the relationship with the old friends who are still under the influence of alcohol (helpguide.org). Most people who are in drugs it is because they are dragged into that by their friends. Therefore keeping away from them breaks the pressure.

The other one is to avoid visiting places such as the bars and the restaurants. This will help the young person not get tempted into falling prey of the alcohol related problems. Finally, the person could strive to create strong bonds with the parents and other close friends who they will become accountable to. Family therapy is very powerful when it comes to the changes of behavior. Parents on the other side should avoid being too harsh and judgmental and express unconditional love to their children and with time there is hope that though they are addicted, they will recover.

Barriers to Successful Treatment for Targeted Person
It is however at times difficult to treat people who are suffering from drug related problems as we have seen above. This is owing to the fact that the alcohol or the drugs may alter the mind functions. Reconstructing this becomes one of the major problems. However, treatment can still occur even under this, but certain myths and misconceptions have to be dealt with. There are those people who believe that when you are addicted there is nothing that you can do about it. However, this is not the case so long as the person has the will power, then they will get help.

Others feel that since they trying fighting for the problem and it is not improving then there is no way they can recover. However it is great to note recovery is a process that may take many days and even months but the end results will be positive.

The other reason why people may not get help is because of the belief that treatment is personal. It has been found that the involvement of parents and the legal systems can also assist them in recovering.

Considerations for RehabilitationCommunity Counselors
There are times when helping these young people who are so much affected to the point of addiction recover. When that point comes, most of the family members feel hopeless and helpless. However, this is not the end of everything. The person could be referred to the counselors who will be seeking to know the root cause of the problem. They are very helpful since they reason with the young people and are able to analyze their minds to know whether the problem is genetic or it is as a way to avoid certain realities in life.

The whole of this counseling session could be carried on from the rehabilitation centers depending on the damage caused by the effects of the drugs. The main importance of the rehab is that they are kept away from the reach of the drugs that they have been abusing. This will daily enable them begin recovering and coming back to the normal situation.

Conclusion
The prevalence of drugs among the Native American young people is wide and it cannot be ignored. The effects of this problem are so fatal not only to he lives of this young people but to others as well. The impact is also so high on the government, parents and the community at large. The issue is therefore a matter of the whole nation to come together in order to mitigate it.

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