Serious Mental Health Concerns Within the Homeless
Spreading Awareness to This Growing Issue/How to Help.
Did you know that not only are homeless people more likely to become mentally ill (see below for definition), but mentally ill people are more likely to become homeless! "30-40% of those experiencing homelessness have a mental illness" (Homeless Hub) and that number can jump even higher to around 75% internationally if you also include substance abuse. To compare, "Only 6% of Americans are severely mentally ill" (National Coalition for the Homeless). I know I have noticed, especially here in Portland, the number of homeless people seems to only be increasing every year and there are a number of various effects that homelessness can do to a person. It's not only extremely tiring, but lack of food, water, shelter, and/or clothes will definitely cause your mental status to change in a numerous amount of ways. The quality of life these people are living is extremely low and is something that should not be continuing and they need our help.
To have a mental illness can mean many things and I don't mean to use these terms lightly or disrespectfully as I continue because these are very real, sad, and potentially scary issues that must be addressed to spread awareness. So what does having a mental illness entail? According to the American Psychiatric Association (APA), "Mental illnesses are health conditions involving changes in emotion, thinking or behavior (or a combination of these)". This is a very broad and kind of unclear definition but just know mental health issues can be minor but they also can be extremely sever. It's a very big range. Things like depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, addiction, and schizophrenia are just a few changes within the brain that, especially while on drugs, can be very dangerous for the user/individual and also for the general public to be around in some cases.
Being in a bad physical state will only make one's mental state worse as well (in most cases). These people (most likely) don't have a job which would provide them with a steady income, they don't have a stable, safe, and warm shelter, their access to food and water might be limited, they might have little social interaction/no family interaction, overall you get the idea. Being homeless is far less than ideal and it's extremely hard to recover from, especially in the case of being on drugs with no support systems. Add mental illness on top of all that and these individuals might not even be able to perform simple everyday tasks. And with their lack of access to these resources the homeless might also possibly neglect their hygiene which can not only be damaging externally but can impact their physical well being internally as well. This can lead to increased exposure to diseases and other issues that might need medical attention that they simply just don't have access to. All of these issues combined unfortunately result in an increased early morbidity amongst a large majority of these populations. Overall, this is something that we as a functioning society should not continue to allow and we should be helping these people instead of watching them from a far.
One of the biggest solutions to these issues are community based services/centers.
Whether it be for physical or mental health, addiction, food and/or shelter needs, etc. there are options out there. However, in my opinion, to really fix these issues and lower the number of homeless overall governments really should be funding for more community based services around all of America/the world (You can contact Portland City Council to encourage more urgency towards these issues). These centers should also be prevalent enough so that getting to these locations will be easy for the homeless, who might not have access to stable transportation (walkable distances are preferred). The centers should also be free for the homeless as these populations might feel afraid to even check them out in fear of not being able to afford them. In general, these population are much more vulnerable than say you or me. They most likely have experienced some form of extreme trauma in their life and they need to be shown the way/"handheld" in some situations (we need to reach out to them because they're most likely not going to help themselves, look at the provided links below for direct and indirect help options/resources).
At the end of the day I think the one thing people in these kinds of situations need most is support.
Getting homeless populations permanent shelters/jobs is, of course, the biggest end goal but that's a very hard thing to achieve. So, a small stepping stone to a better future is to provide these populations just with enough support and resources to help them learn how to help themselves again. We must also keep pushing for additional research to be done in this field so that we can better understand how to solve these issues. Often times homeless individuals are misinterpreted/giving a bad reputation because of what the media shows. That's why we need additional research, exposure to these issues, and main stream media advocacy to help end the homelessness crisis we are experiencing today. It will be a long fight and it's no where close to being over yet, but every person willing to help is one step closer. We must work together if we want things to be done. For an abundance of useful information on how to get involved with, how to contribute to, or even how to advocate for this growing issue click this link, https://nationalhomeless.org/get-involved/. There is so much help that can be done by the general public you just need to know where to find it.
Volunteering
Like I mentioned above, as a reader there are many things that can be done to help fight this battle so that the homeless are not alone. The best way to help is by volunteering. Blanchet House here in Portland is an amazing program that helps feed, clothe, and give resources to the homeless and they accept all the help they can take (Find more information about how to help here: https://blanchethouse.org/get-involved/). The Right to Shower also provides such good information about the many different ways someone can volunteer (because it doesn't always mean working face-to-face with the homeless) and that link is here, https://www.therighttoshower.com/make-difference/how-to-volunteer-to-help-the-homeless,
Other Ways/Options to Help
Sometimes volunteering directly can be a little intimidating but don't worry, there are many other things you can do today to help this population. This article, https://www.therighttoshower.com/make-difference/7-practical-ways-you-can-help-the-homeless, by The Right to Shower holds extremely useful and practical information about how and where to start within fighting this cause.
How to Help on the Streets
Lastly, if you happen to see someone who appears to be homeless, in need, or in a mental health crisis, this article, https://www.latimes.com/homeless-housing/story/2022-01-19/how-to-help-a-homeless-person-in-crisis, by the Los Angeles Times provides great information on what steps to take to deal with them and how to handle an emergency situation. A very good read because you never know when you might actually be able to help someone on the streets. That is just one example of the importance of educating yourself. This article also provides good phone numbers you should save in your phone for quick access in a case of emergency.
To conclude, this problem only seems to be growing because there are not enough willing, able-bodied people helping. As I stated above, some of these homeless populations are significantly struggling just to get through each day. They need that extra support and help from the general public and truly anything will help. Whether you have some old clothes you want to throw out, have extra time during the week to volunteer, or simply just take time to research and get educated on this issue, anything will help determine the future for these populations. If you truly care about the future of your city and the people within it, I would strongly advise clicking the links provided above, educating yourself about easy ways you can actually impact the community, or maybe even just spreading the news and telling people you know about this issue. Even helping one person get off the street is a success and is something we should all want for our future. We're all in this together one day and one step at a time.
Thank you for your time and consideration within researching these provided links and resources.
Below are some links that provide resources for the homeless if you or someone you know is in need.
-Homelessness Programs and Resources. Samhsa. https://www.samhsa.gov/homelessness-programs-resources
-Find Immediate Assistance. Samhsa. https://www.samhsa.gov/homelessness-programs-resources/path/immediate-assistance
-Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH). Benefits.gov. https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/728
-Shelter and Homeless Services. Multnomah County. https://www.multco.us/dd/shelter-and-homeless-services#:~:text=Visiting%20211info.org%20%2C%20emailing%20help,availability%20and%20wait%20list%20status.
Never be afraid to reach out and ask for help. There are options out there.
Written by: Ari Ciota
References:
Adachi, Matthew. 2020. Mental Health and Homelessness. Medium. https://medium.com/literacy-in-the-world/mental-health-and-homelessness-10b5cc46a0aa
Balasuriya, Lilanthi. 2020. The Never-Ending Loop: Homelessness, Psychiatric Disorder, and Mortality. Psychiatric Times. https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/never-ending-loop-homelessness-psychiatric-disorder-and-mortality
Fuller Torrey. E. 250,000 mentally Ill are Homeless. 140,000 seriously mentally Ill are Homeless. https://mentalillnesspolicy.org/consequences/homeless-mentally-ill.html#:~:text=Numerous%20studies%20have%20reported%20that,is%20lower%20among%20homeless%20families.
Homeless Hub. 2021. Mental Health. Homeless Hub. https://www.homelesshub.ca/about-homelessness/topics/mental-health
National Coalition for the Homeless. 2009. Mental Illness and Homelessness. National Coalition for the Homeless. https://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/Mental_Illness.pdf
Njoku, Ihuoma. 2022. What is Mental Illness. American Psychiatric Association. https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/what-is-mental-illness
Treatment Advocacy Center. 2016. Serious Mental Illness and Homelessness. Treatment Advocacy Center. https://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/evidence-and-research/learn-more-about/3629-serious-mental-illness-and-homelessness
Comments
Post a Comment