Inter-Generational Trauma and Addiction in Arizona

Native American Tribal Members and Breaking the Cycles of Trauma

How do generational trauma and addict ion weave together? Intergenerational trauma is oftentimes a precursor to substance abuse, as many people use alcohol and drugs to cope. This is especially true among Native American tribal members who may not get the mental health counseling they need.

Generational trauma occurs when parents pass down their trauma to their children either through their actions or through genetic markers. Transgenerational trauma puts you at a greater risk of substance use and mental health issues. Symptoms can mirror PTSD symptoms or mood disorder symptoms, so be sure to seek help if you struggle.

Changes Healing Center specializes not only in substance abuse but also in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Our continuum of care stretches from residential treatment to intensive outpatient, allowing you to secure the level of help that feels right for you.

Keep reading to learn more about substance use and generational trauma symptoms.

Historical Trauma and the Risk of Substance Use Disorder

Maybe you’re thinking to yourself that you didn’t experience a traumatic event in your lifetime. You were never in a serious car accident. You weren’t assaulted. Nobody threatened your life or abused you. But you might be wrong about whether trauma impacts you on a day-to-day basis.

This is where transgenerational trauma can come into the picture.

Native Americans were the victims of colonization generations ago, which was a horrible time in history for this people group. Generations later, we’re still reeling from its impact on this people group. In turn, it could lead to differences in how you cope.

Research shows that Native Americans and Native Alaskans are at a greater risk of substance use. This is all the more reason to seek help for mental health when it’s needed. Native Americans will experience much higher rates of mental illness, substance use disorder, and suicide compared to other groups.

However, families who have lived through natural disasters or even Holocaust survivors will also pass along generational trauma.

How Childhood Trauma Impacts Mental Health Issues

It isn’t just Native Americans who should focus on healing generational trauma. Studies done on new mothers prove that there are serious impacts on the following generation if mothers are subject to any kind of interpersonal trauma. They might use substances as coping mechanisms, which in turn creates trauma for their children.

The cycle repeats itself over and over again, expanding trauma to reach across the generations and cause psychological distress of all kinds.

That’s not to say that such trauma always repeats itself. For example, you might have been a victim of sexual abuse, but you don’t sexually abuse your child. They live with the consequences of your abuse daily. Plus, the studies show that family members who use substances make their children more likely to use them.

It’s a complex cycle that functions as a sort of carousel that can feel impossible to leave.

How to Spot Intergenerational Trauma: Signs and Symptoms

If you don’t know how your family lineage impacts you today, you might consider some symptoms that are typically associated with unresolved trauma. Knowing how generational trauma impacts you can make you more likely to take the steps necessary to kick substance use from your life for good.

Consider some of these symptoms:

• Anxiety, depression, and overall mood issues
• Constant alertness as if looking for danger
• Denial that anything bad has happened to you or your family members
• Unresolved shame or guilt for no identifiable reason
• Insomnia
• Nightmares of things that happened in the past or other disrupted sleep patterns
• Reliving trauma (even if it didn’t happen to you)
• Suppressed emotions
• Addiction

If you or subsequent generations are struggling with some of these issues, then a confrontation with the past might be in order. You don’t have to live your life in a way that subjects you to the trauma that belongs to generations before you. Break the cycle here and now.

Seek Mental Health Counseling for Intergenerational Trauma

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration states that roughly one in four people with a mental illness also has a substance use issue. This could mean a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis or a mood disorder, both of which can leave an impact on you or your future children.

Changes Healing Center works with dual-diagnosis clients to overcome their mental health issues and put new coping mechanisms in place without drugs and alcohol.

Our approach is comprehensive. We offer individual therapy so that you can dive into what’s bothering you in an intimate, one-on-one setting. However, we also provide you with robust group therapy and even family therapy to start working through adverse childhood experiences.

A mental health professional will see you through those difficult emotions and conversations around any traumatic experiences.

Learn About Yourself Even if Your Family Won’t

Generational trauma is complex, and your family members may not be open or willing to discuss what they have been through, even if they know it affects you deeply. You can only heal yourself. Instead of trying to change the past, you can start by identifying the triggers and behaviors that lead to coping mechanisms like drinking alcohol.

Whether you are a tribal member seeking treatment or a person whose family has been battling addiction for decades or longer, you can break the cycles and forge a new future.

Our programs and therapeutic approaches can help you replace your destructive coping skills, like drinking and drug use, and help you to teach new ones to future generations.

Remember that you can use different mental healthcare levels to heal. You could enroll in a residential setting for the most intense experience or an intensive outpatient program for freedom and flexibility.

The important thing to note here is that you’ll have to commit to doing better regardless of what other family members have to say. Not everyone will agree that you have inherited trauma or that you need trauma therapy. But keep doing the heavy lifting, and you might inspire them to seek help too.

Choose Changes for Substance Use and Trauma Recovery Today

Your family doesn’t have to be descended from Holocaust survivors to have psychological trauma that will impact you day to day. Mental health conditions can be improved, minimizing the effects of these intergenerational trauma experiences. We offer comprehensive treatment plans that allow for both mental health and substance use issues.

Better yet, we take many forms of health insurance, including AHCCCS, to offset the out-of-pocket cost of getting the help you need. Call us today to learn more about generational trauma and how we can help you enroll in our continuum of care!

References

1. Kaufman, J., & Zigler, E. (n.d.). Do Abused Children Become Abusive Parents?. NCJRS Virtual Library. 
2. Gameon, J. A., & Skewes, M. C. (2021). Historical trauma and substance use among American Indian people with current substance use problems. Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors, 35(3), 295–309.
3. Indian Health Service. (n.d.-c). Behavioral health: Fact sheets.
4. Meulewaeter, F., De Pauw, S. S. W., & Vanderplasschen, W. (2019). Mothering, Substance Use Disorders and Intergenerational Trauma Transmission: An Attachment-Based Perspective. Frontiers in psychiatry, 10, 728.
5. Trauma. Administration for Children & Families. (n.d.).
6. Mental health and substance use co-occurring disorders. SAMHSA. (n.d.-b).