Cultural Immersion: Visiting Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Center

Introduction

Culture is the qualities and learning of a specific gathering of individuals, enveloping dialect, religion, cooking, social propensities, music and expressions. There is an immaterial esteem which originates from adapting in another place, incorporating into the network, connecting with nearby individuals, and understanding the manner in which others live and that is an extremely basic and ideally straightforward meaning of social inundation which is our fundamental core interest. Social inundation is extremely simply an issue of escaping your environment and expat condition and into your general surroundings. Coordinating yourself into a culture does not take a considerable measure of work, but rather you need to effectively take an interest. More than likely, you picked a specific area outside on the grounds that it has intrigued you more than some other, and getting amped up for investigating these things that you believe will premium you. Culture for me is high contrast, not as in it is a certain something or the other, yet in light of the fact that I have two totally unique social childhoods from inverse finishes of the range.

My parents separated from when I was extremely youthful so my life has dependably been part into two. My mom is from a little, rustic town in Northeast, Mabudzane. She is receptive, laid back, and just about a free soul. My father, then again, is from Tutume yet originate from Lesotho and because of his exceptional work of being the quickest sprinter in our nation he was announced a privileged citizenship of Botswana. He is extremely customary, family arranged, and marginally resolute. Growing up for the most part with my mom, I lived in a socially differing territory the majority of my life. I spent a large portion of my years in schools where white individuals were marginally the minority. Along these lines, I was educated to be deferential of other individuals' traditions and customs. Despite what might be expected, I acquired the resoluteness of progress and structure from my father. I am extremely aware of different societies and have, now and again, got myself sufficiently inquisitive to explore things, however I am customary and firm to the point of clutching my own social character, regardless of some of the time associating or identifying with others. I am absolutely glad for my own social qualities and convictions, regardless of how I created them, yet I could never put down someone else on the grounds that they have their own disparities.

My First Visit to Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Center

Since I was educated to be deferential and liberal, I at first experienced difficulty picking an occasion that would submerge me in a culture that was awkward. Subsequent to doing some reasoning and some examination, I took care of go to a restoration community for substance abusers situated at Lobatse. A customary moderation, habit, or liquor program would not work for me. While I have never had an issue with liquor or some other dependence I have known other people who have, so I knew it would not be sufficiently awkward. While I was raised to never pass judgment or have conclusions shaped in advance, I can't force myself to be tolerant or acceptant of medications. It is difficult to comprehend what occurs in a man's life to drive them to attempt drugs. Surprisingly more terrible are the things a man dependent can do while on drugs, or to get drugs. Also, notwithstanding my folks' diverse foundations and child rearing styles, neither one of the ones would bolster me if I somehow managed to take drugs. I imagined that going to a gathering where I would be encompassed by tranquilize addicts would make me feel exceedingly awkward. In view of what I read and what others have said in regards to this specific place and comparable stations, I anticipated that would see a bunch of individuals, either battling with habit or recuperating from dependence, stand up and discuss their lives, what sort of addictions they have, why they chose to go to the gathering, and things of that nature. I knew I would not be standing up boisterous, aside from acquainting myself with the gathering pioneer or educator.

My Experience at the Lobatse Rehabilitation Center

The recovery focus meeting was booked for 8 o'clock Monday toward the beginning of the day. It was held in a generally huge open room of which I assumed was a lobby. I was awkward before I even escaped my cousin's auto who went with me there. There was a gathering of at least ten people outside smoking cigarettes previously the gathering formally started. Inside the lobby was another ten people anticipating persistently. The general population were as youthful as eighteen and as old as sixty. The gathering was about equivalent to the extent people, and in addition high contrast. The lobby had two rooms in it. The passageway room had a little lounge chair that had been around a while and a corner heaped with different infant things. The littler room went into a passage, where the not as much as spotless washroom was, and gone into a vast room.

The expansive room was the gathering room. It was loaded up with a wide range of seats and lounge chairs for individuals to sit. One divider was totally canvassed in composing from individuals who had marked their names, dates of collectedness, and numerous different messages. The main individual to address me was the gathering pioneer. He acquainted himself with me, and asked what my compulsion was. I disclosed to him I didn't have any enslavement, yet that I was planning to sit in for a school investigate venture. He said that I was more than welcome and was happy I came. When he started the gathering, he began with the supplication, which was likewise posted on the divider for any new comers who did not know it. After the petition, he recounted the gathering his account of compulsion, how he defeated it, and that he has been calm for a long time. He invited any other person who needed to address recount their accounts. The main couple individuals who talked had comparative accounts of compulsion where they started taking medications recreationally as adolescents and it heightened to the point of getting them into legitimate inconvenience. They had all kept up their balance since they began going to gatherings.

One ladies talked that had been as of late dependent out of the blue and got captured at a movement stop with drugs in her pocket. She put in a year in prison, lost care of her youngsters, and had just been out of prison for two months. This was her first gathering, and she was urgent to turn her life around and recover her youngsters. The greater part of the speakers were more seasoned, and the more youthful individuals took an interest less. After everybody who needed to talk got a turn, the pioneer declared a washroom and smoking break. While a few people went to the bathroom and went outside to smoke, numerous individuals acquainted themselves with the new individuals who had not gone to previously. A few people conversed with me. They were marginally astounded to discover I was there for a school venture, and not a dependence, but rather they were all extremely inviting. They clarified this was an ordinary gathering and informed me regarding who alternate regulars were, and somewhat more about the pioneer. Obviously the pioneer's little girl was expected to have a child quickly so the infant things heaped in the receiving area were things others had given for her. Once the break was finished and everybody restored, the gathering continued. The pioneer discussed things to evade to enable keep to individuals out of inconvenience. He examined different volunteer open doors around town for the next week. A declaration of all the more up and coming gatherings was made. The gathering finished up with a possibility for inquiries and no one had any. As everybody was leaving, the pioneer by and by addressed them on out the entryway and gave them a leaflet with the gathering plan.

My Awareness Towards These Group

My feelings upon arriving at the meeting were significantly different than how I felt leaving. When I arrived and saw all the people standing outside, my first thought was not judging them, although I think I unconsciously did. My first thought was how they would judge me, I am a young, pregnant woman, alone, and clearly look as if I do not belong in that part of town, let alone a meeting for drugs. I was extremely nervous just to walk through the group of people standing outside just to go in. Once I went in and the leader welcomed me, I felt a little better. He was genuinely happy I chose to come to their meeting. After hearing his story about how he managed to get sober, and then spent the last eleven years trying to help others get sober, I felt guilty about feeling uncomfortable. After listening to the others talk, especially the woman who lost her kids, I realized that I was still thinking of these people as drug addicts and criminals, and not as people who have moved past that life and were trying to get help. While a few of them were there just because the court ordered them to attend meetings, most of them have spent the last few years fighting themselves and everything they know to maintain their sobriety.

The people were not weak and immoral, they are struggling to stay strong no matter what they are faced with. They live one day at a time and use whatever support system they have to. The ones who have been sober longer are following the example of the group leader, they want to share their stories in hopes of helping someone else recover from addiction or prevent them from ever getting an addiction to begin with. As far as cultural competency goes, this was an interesting experiment. I believe I went into the meeting as stage three of cultural competency. I was aware that there was a cultural difference between the meeting members and myself, but I did not account for the cultural differences between the different meeting members as well. I went into the experience with my own set of beliefs and judgments. I knew I would need to be open-minded, but it is hard to actually put it into action when you feel surrounded by something uncomfortable before you can even get out of the car.

After the meeting, I think I am somewhere between stages four and five of cultural competency. I acknowledge the cultural differences, but I now know that it is not always a bad thing. People from all different backgrounds and cultures can deal with the same issue. On the other hand, people from the same backgrounds can have completely different experiences. The importance is not the things that the people have done, but how they are handling it from this point forward. I believe I am in stage five in the sense of exploring and understanding the issues that a cultural group has to face, but I am not actively doing something to make a difference which still puts me somewhere around stage four. I do not know if I will ever actively do something about the differences, but I hope to reach a point where I can celebrate them.

Personal Biases and Issues

Growing up I feared death, the thought of dying in night outs always came to my mind whenever I thought of going out. People face many risks that include immoral sexual behaviours, loss of respect towards other people even elders, theft in case there is shortage of money to buy these drugs and alcohol, to mention but a few. In that case I avoided drinking and taking drugs so as not to become a victim of the aforementioned outcomes of drinking alcohol and taking drugs. Also due to the fact that my parents always emphasizes on good moral behaviour I always try by all means to uphold what they taught me, to be a respectful person. Their advices played a pivotal role in my life as they drove me to avoid most of the things considered immoral such as drinking and taking drugs. In my own perspective, I think that people who own bars and clubs are bad people as most if not all of them encourage bad behaviour because they are in it for money. I am a person of my own, I do not like noise, crowds that are seen when out for drinking or smoking. A lot of partying can lead to a lack of sleep, our sleep routine suffers which leads to sleep deprivation. Drugs are not healthy as they cause disease like lung cancer while as alcohol leads to people suffering from kidney problems as alcohol can burn the kidney. Lastly, people who drink often get old faster.

Implementation of My Knowledge Towards This Particular Group

The most widely recognized and successful approach to treat individuals with drinking issues is by advising. The partner will tune in to customers, set aside his or her own edge of reference and endeavor to see the customer's reality without being judgmental. Comprehend and offer the sentiments of customers by venturing into their shoes. I will set aside my convictions, states of mind about the customer and exhibit unqualified positive respect i. e. tolerating customers for their identity. The aide will keep the data that he/she gets from the customer classified and not be pass it to anybody. The partner will converse with patients about their drinking issue, helping them to assess their everyday practice of taking an interest in evenings out and create thoughts on the best way to manage their concern. This encourages them plan what they need to change, and how they will keep up those progressions. Anyway the guide won't be the just a single putting the arrangement enthusiastically the, the patient will likewise have an interpretation of it as well.

The vast majority require a halting or diminish their support in evenings out and drinking. I will urge customers to get assistance from a steady relative, companion and experts as they can bolster the patient to keep to drinking less and controlling his drinking, and monitor his advancement. A few people can't stop or decrease their drinking without confronting any challenges. They create withdrawal signs like flimsiness, serious want of liquor, eagerness, fits when they don't drink and so on. On the off chance that this occurs, as an instructor I will urge the customer to be associated with wellness exercises, drink on less events since this can propel them to change their drinking designs. Patients will be alluded to a specialist who will evaluate whether they may likewise require prescriptions to be recommended. I will enable the customer to create aptitudes which can help him/her to counter circumstances which prompt drinking, learn and hone how to state no when approached to go for a night out.

Conclusion

It is concluded that going to a different group that one has never met before is a good experience as one gets to learn how to accept one’s own difference, get to learn the way of life of that particular group and most important of all one gets to learn how to deal or to help that particular group of people be it at work or anywhere they meet. A visit to Lobatse rehabilitation center exposed me to different things I did not know, like how to treat people rehabilitated for alcohol and smoking but now I feel I am too ready to help or deal with someone of that situation.