Stigma and Shame among Substance Abuser Women

Background: Women who use drugs have to face very hazardous consequences, self-
stigma, internalize shame and stigmas of society as compared to men’s. They have less social
support; are more influenced in issues relating to drug use and recovery by their parental role and
through their partners; and are at a greater risk of exposure to violence and blood-borne infections.
Aim: to assess the level of self stigma and shame among substance abuser women. Study design:
a descriptive exploratory study design was used. Setting: this study was conducted at inpatient
department for substance abusers women in Abbasiya for Mental health Hospital- Cairo city.
Subject: convenient sample of 30 substance abuser women. Data collection tools: 1) Socio-
demographic questionnaire for women. 2)Substance Abuse Self Stigma Scale, SASSS. 3) The
Internalized Shame Scale, ISS. Results: the result of this study revealed that half of the studied
substance abuser women had “high” level of self-stigma, less than half of them recorded
“average” level, and the less of them had “low” level of self stigma related to substance abuse.
Also, half of the studied substance abuser women had “average” level of shame, less than half
recorded “high” level, and the less of them had “low” level of internalized shame related to
substance abuse. Conclusion: the study concluded that, there were highly statistically significant
positive correlations between total level of self-stigma and internalized shame among studied
substance abuser women. Recommendations: A hotline must be available to solve immediate
problems of substance abuser women with self stigma and shame. Expand primary health care
services in community services frequently used by substance abuser women.