Hearing impaired persons tend to have a greater risk of substance abuse issues because of their impairment, and rehabilitation services have to be available which cater to their needs. Individuals who are hearing impaired can feel isolated, lack motivation, and goalless because of the impairment. Many hearing impaired individuals then elect to self medicate with drugs or alcohol to numb this pain and experience a temporary release from the psychological and emotional challenges that accompany having this handicap in everyday life. In the first place, detecting an alcohol and drug abuse problem among the hearing impaired can be a challenge, since these individuals may try and hide their issue as a result of social stigmas attached to abusing drugs. Nonetheless, drug and alcohol rehabilitation counselors who provide rehab to hearing impaired individuals understand the challenges that these clients face. ASL rehabilitation services are definitely a necessity, as are treatment services which address the particular challenges that hearing impaired individuals face. Group therapy provides a venue for important peer support so that rehabilitation clients can know that they're not on their own, and that there's hope to handle their problem with drugs and alcohol. Individual counseling services can be more tailor-made for each individual to ensure their own problems can be handled in rehab.