somali children and families - the conference...
TRANSCRIPT
Somali Children and Families
Presenters:
n Abdulahi Mohamed, MSW, LGSW– Center for Somali Family & Children Services, Minneapolis, MN
n Hassan Ugas, MSW– Center for Somali Family & Children Services, Minneapolis, MN
n David McGraw Schuchman, MSW, LICSW– Volunteers of America, Minneapolis, MN
Somali Children and Families
n I. History and Culture
n II. Family Dynamics
n III. Mental Health
n IV. Questions and Answers
I. History & Culture
A. Map of Somalia.
Geography/topography
n 246,200 sq mi (637,657 sq km)n South of the Arabian Peninsula across the Gulf of
Aden, also bordered by Ethiopia and Kenya (W ), Djibouti (NW), and the Indian Ocean (E )
n 3,300 kilometers of coastline, the longest in Af rican Terrain-mostly flat, but with higher regions
(mountains) along the northern coast close to the border of Ethiopia
n Shimber-berries the highest peak (2,410 meters (7,906 feet)
Population
n Between 10-15 million people (est.)nMajority of the Somali people are
Nomadsn Farming between the two rivers
(Shabeele and Juba)n Fishing around the coast
Language
n Somali is the official language - 1st written in 1972
n Arabicn Kiswahili (NFD) of Kenyan Amharic (Ogaden or Somali region) of
Ethiopian French (Djibouti)
Pre/post colonial era
n After the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, Somalis were under the rule of 4 foreign powers:
n The British--north central region and in northeastern Kenya (NFD).
n The Italians—southern region.n The French—northwestern region and
Djibouti.n The Ethiopians—Ogaden region.
Pre/post colonial (cont.)
n July 1st, 1960 the birth of the Somal i Democratic Republic
n 1964 and 1977 the Ogaden wars with Ethiopia
nMilitary rule: 1969-1990.n Civil war: 1991 – present.
Migration to USA
n The first Somali immigrants came to the United States in the 1920’s.
n In 1992, waves of Somal is resettled in the U.S. as immigrants.
nMajority Somali refugees settled in MN.n Other states: CA, WA, OH, ME, OR,
GA.nMigration reasons: push/pull factors.
Migration to USA
n Why MN?n Joining other family members/sponsors.n Secondary immigration.n Employment opportunities.n Housing opportunities.n MN nice: tolerant/hospitable Minnesotans.n Ice fishing?
Culture & Religion
n Majority—Sunni Muslims.n Islam is the principle faith and is vitally
important to Somalis identity.n Somalis possess values similar to those of
Americans--independence, democracy, individualism and equality.
n Generosity is also valued, but unlike Americans, Somalis do not express their appreciation verbally (“thank you”).
Culture & Religion (cont.)
n Dress: The Islamic way promotes modesty. Men and women wear long and loose fitting clothes. Male and female clothing is easily distinguished (no unisex clothing). The hijab(cover) is worn by girls after age 15.
n Names: There are no last names in the Western sense. However, Somalis are still identified by 3 names.
n Women don’t change their last names with marriage.
II. Family Dynamics
n Family is deeply valued. Protection of family honor or legacy is also extremely important. Oftentimes, loyalty extends beyond the family and clan.
n Friendship is highly valued. If you meet a Somali and become friends, he or she is your friend for life!
n Birthdays, however, are not traditionally valued.
Family Dynamics (cont.)
n Clans and sub-clans are a source of solidarity as well as conflict. They originate from male ancestry.
n Family is the ultimate source of personal security and identity.
n Traditionally, in Somalia, husbands worked outside and were the sole providers for the family while wives took care of the family and did the domestic work. However, modern day society has changed these roles.
Family Dynamics (cont.)
n Gender role reversalsnWomen adjust faster; men resent the
progress of womenn Inadequate l iving spacesn Loss of tradi tional conflict resolution
Family Dynamics (cont.)
n Differential acculturation: children learn faster than parents.
n Role reversals: children are the cul ture brokers.
n Lack of respect by chi ldren.n Loss of parental authority.n Gender role expectation.
Family Dynamics (cont.)
Youth Issuesn “Kala maan”: caught between two culturesn Identity crisisn Schoolingn Lack of parental supervisionn Trauma as refugeen Povertyn Homelessnessn Drugsn Teen pregnancyn Out of home placement and runaways
III. Mental health
§ Western vs. Somali view of mental health and mental illness.
SOMALI VIEW§ Definition :The traditional paradigm of mental health
is that a person is either mentally ill/unf it (completely insane/abnormal) or mentally health/f it (sane/normal).
§ Perception : Mind, body, and spirit are seen as a whole & undivided.
§ Mental Illness : is generally viewed as: permanent; non-preventable; incurable; secret & personal; and has an unknown & unpredictable prognosis.
Mental Health (cont.)
n Cultural - Major stigma/shame are associated with mental illness.
n Religious – It is a God’s will, therefore, unquestionable.
n Scientific – Some mental illness may have hereditary causes.
n Mentally il l people wil l never get back to their mentally healthy baseline and mental stability can never be trusted. Mentall y ill people can ’t take any responsibility and are not liable to any law.
n Mental illness is not easil y accepted and is mostly denied as long as possible.
Mental Health (cont.)
n Expression of Distress: they express their mental distress as physical problems (for example: headache, body pain, constipation, sleeplessness).
n Somalis use irony, multiple suggestive words, and culturally-specific metaphors that would lose their true cultural meanings when literally translated/interpreted into English.
Mental Health (cont.)
n The most commonly used words, metaphors of distress:
n Buufis: Literally means “inflating a balloon to the point of bursting”. Triad of depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms are expressed.
n Murug/Wel wel (sadness/worried): A spectrum ranging from everyday sadness, stress, or disappointment at one end to a more serious prolonged depression that could cause physical illness.
Mental Health (cont.)
n Gini or Jinni: Could have different meanings or uses depending on the context. Literally means supernatural beings or spirits created by God and have power to alter their appearances to be human-appearing, animal-like, or invisible. Gini are very powerful and capable of exerting influence over human actions and behaviors.
Causes of Mental Illness
n Spirit possession: Spirits reside within each individual. When they become angry, illnesses such as fever, headache, dizziness, lethargy insomnia and weakness can result (depression, apathy, and anxiety). It occurs mostly to women. Similar to hysterical conversion disorder symptoms.
n Moral transgression: Result of Divine will.n Evil eye (Il): Interpersonal caused by other people. A healthy or
wealthy person may fall ill or have an accident because they were evil eyed by a less fortunate person. Purposefully or inadvertently.
n Curses: By ill treated or disregarded parents are among the most dreadful ones.
n Witchcraft: Throwing spell on someone intentionally.n Gini/Jin: Supernatural spirits or ghosts. Affected person may see
images or hear voices that aren’t perceived by others.
Treatment of Mental Illness
Somali proverbs: “A sick person has 100 advisers.” “We can say amentally ill person is all right for now, but we can’t say he/she is cured.”Therapy & counseling are non-existent. Belief of treatment is closely tied tothe belief about the illness. n Spiritual healing: Sheikh recites Koran over the patient or into a water bowl
which patient drinks afterwards. Becoming God-conscious. Repentance. Wearing amulet as a pendent to protect evil spirits.
n Traditional healing: Animal sacrifices. Using spirit experts (male or female practitioner) who perform astrological divination to diagnose the patient & then conduct their rituals through dances, music, songs, herbs, & fumigations to exorcise the evil spirit/jinn. Most commonly known practices are – mingis, zar/saar, borane, hayat, and sharrah. Spirits may have specific demands to be met so it can be placated.
n Medication: When exhausted all other options. No psychotherapy.n Incarceration: Last resort. When behavior is threatening to self & others.
Barriers for Treatment
n Stigma and Shame: Are powerful culture influences. Fear of labeling and gossip. Cognitive dissonance. People are named after their physical characteristics.
n Communication: Language barriers, lack of bilingual providers, differentstyles of communication.
n Mistrust and Fear: Providers, psychotropic medication, and misdiagnosis.n Attribution/Understanding: Spiritual, supernatural, somatization, family
separation, acculturation stress, and daily life stressors. Delays between onset and treatment.
n Help-seeking Behavior: Present oriented, problem focused. Not preventative. Hopelessness for effective treatment & recovery.
n Lack of services: Specific, ethnic-informed, family-focused intervention.n Lack of information: No awareness of needs and possibility for treatment.
Recommendations
n Specific and ethnic-focused, practice-based evidence.n Consideration of cultural views and treatment for mental i llness.n Incorporation of Western & alternative approaches.n Family-focused.n Evaluate the culturally relevant aspects of the stress.n Attention should be paid to the ways in which culture can influence
the clinical relationships.n Patients’ explanatory models of causality, illness, and desired
treatment needs to be assessed.n Diagnoses are culture bound; symptoms are universal.n Use of euphemism is required because mental illness has stigma.n Symptoms need to be unders tood within a cultural & personal context.
IV. Q & A
Waad mahadsantahiinThank You
Contact Information
n Abdulahi Mohamed, MSW, LGSW– Center for Somali Family & Children Services, Minneapolis, MN– Phone: 612-423-2852– Email: [email protected]
n Hassan Ugas, MSW– Center for Somali Family & Children Services, Minneapolis, MN– Phone: 612-598-6179– Email: [email protected]
n David McGraw Schuchman, MSW, LICSW– Volunteers of America, Minneapolis, MN– Phone: Phone: 612-375-0700– Email: [email protected]