Growing up, I have
constantly been reminded by my dad how "lucky" I am to live the life
I do, and how different his life was growing up. He is one of 6 children who
all grew up in a 3 bedroom house in a small suburb of Cleveland. I learned that
they were lucky to have one running car at a given time, and often were lacking
basic necessities. My dad began working at the age of 14 because he knew he
needed to help support his family. Of the six children in his family, three of
them struggled with mental problems. His family did not have the means to seek
proper care for the children who needed it, so their problems went
untreated.
My dad's sister, Juliene,
was among the 3 who struggled with mental problems from an early age. An
unhealthy family life only contributed to her mental instability, and she was
ultimately married with 4 children of her own. Growing up, I always knew that
something about her was slightly off. It was never fully explained to me, but I
knew that Aunt Juliene was never 100% there. I learned about her husband
becoming abusive to her and her children. Without support from her immediate
family, there was little she could to do escape her situation. I remember my
dad trying to help her find a job, and helping her move out into her own
apartment. It wasn't long before she lost her job, and was evicted from her
apartment because she couldn't afford rent. I remember my dad hearing the news
that my aunt had been living in a women's shelter, with no other option. She
was homeless, with no place to go. I know that this is an extremely
sensitive topic for my dad, so I currently do not know where my aunt is living.
It is a situation that he wishes he could have prevented, but ultimately was
beyond his control.
I began thinking about this during
our discussion of homelessness.There are so many factors that can lead up to a
person becoming homeless. For my aunt, it was mental illness, improper care,
and an unhealthy marriage. She didn't ask for any of that. If she had received
proper treatment while she was a child, it is possible that she would have
never gotten into a potentially abusive relationship, and never would have
ended up with 4 children that she couldn't take care of. In addition, if she
had ended up in an abusive relationship, perhaps she would have the skills and
tools to keep a job and support herself on her own. I think situations like my
aunts are common among the homeless population. She isn't lazy, worthless, or
addicted to drugs. She has untreated mental issues that have made her incapable
of living on her own.
I know that there is a strong correlation between mental disorders and rates of incarceration or homelessness. The "rotating door" is the term used to describe the system that people can get caught in.
In addition, I found that my aunt experienced most of the key elements
It is true that homelessness can happen to anyone. It wasn't until this class that I began to think about my aunt's story and the ways it is related to a much larger, difficult topic that many people don't know the true answer to. Homelessness is not something that has one solution. It is the product of many factors that reflect elements of our society. I find myself wondering what could have been done to change her situation. What could be done to change any homeless person's situation? We live in a country with many homeless people and even more empty homes. Where can we begin to solve this problem?
I found this post interesting with how you related homelessness and poverty to your own life. It's interesting to see that such extreme forms of poverty can be so near. My own family (namely my father) had very little when he was growing up and my mother-in-law had so little when they were growing up that they didn't even have running water in their house until she was in 6th grade.
ReplyDeleteI know there were some mental issues in the family, but for the most part in came down to simple health issues that they didn't have the money to get treated. I never knew my grandfather because he died of a heart attack before I was born. They never had the money for health care or treatment, so I wonder if things could have been different if they did.
In your post you bring up a really good point about how people stereotype who the homeless are. Like you said, people usually think of homeless people as drug users or people who did not try hard enough. There were a number of factors that played into your aunt becoming homeless that definitely do not fit the stereotype. Your story shows that it really can happen to anyone. I like the picture of the chart you found about what factors contribute to homelessness, because just about every factor on there could be something that could happen to anyone. This shows that it not just a select group of people that become homeless, it could be anyone--friends, family memebers, coworkers, etc.
ReplyDeleteThe articles we discussed in class as well as your story really show that many people misunderstand what causes someone to become homeless. Like we read, most people that end up at a shelter become "shelterized" and usually do not leave. I think if the process was better understood there would be a better system in place to support people who become homeless--and to help them back on their feet. Thanks for sharing such a personal story!
Brittany,
ReplyDeleteReading your account of dealing with mental health issues and its contributions to homelessness reminded me of the thousands of veterans in our own nation who struggle with mental illness and lack of shelter. I can’t even fathom the number of times I’ve seen a weary man or woman on the side of the highway holding a sign explaining how they were an American veteran and did not even have the proper means to house themselves despite their service.
I found several examples of news broadcasts elaborating on this country-wide problem of abandoning the brave few who protect our rights and also an interesting PSA from the Department of Veteran’s Affairs about the Veteran’s Association’s Mental Health. It’s difficult to tell whether the services mentioned in the PSA are actually granted to these former soldiers and, if so, is it accessible?
DVA PSA:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rzaT-wbDYs
News Broadcasts:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7R_o8Bs0sZ8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Mola31oYdY
Obviously, veterans are not the only group dealing with the shortcomings of our country’s mental health services. However, it is a tragic testament to just how inadequate mental health services are to the public. It is more or less taboo to address the growing number of uncared for individuals who are either born with or develop mental illness and are not treated for by the system.
How is it possible that a nation founded on freedom and a worldwide superpower is failing to help its most vulnerable citizens?
Thank you for sharing this personal post. I thought it was interesting reading about her aunt's experiences and struggles. I believe that it is important to point out, as Brittany did, that the homeless are not lazy, drug addicted people and that falling into homelessness can virtually happen to anyone. In her aunt's case, it was mental illness and domestic abuse that were contributing factors in her situation.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that the news has recently become saturated on the topic of mental illness in America because of the recent shootings like in the Sandy Hook Elementary school. According to the National Institute on Mental Health, there are reportedly 26.2 percent of the American population (57.7 million people) 18 years or older who suffer from a mental illness. That's about one in four people. It seems like many people become homeless because of multifaceted causes that and make it hard to be successful.
Reflecting on her Aunt’s story, if she could have gotten help when she was younger than maybe she could have avoid some hardships she’s endured. I think that if our nation gains a better understand of mental illness then we can establish some way to prevent stories like this from happening.
Thank you so much for sharing. I think that the story you shared about your aunt demonstrates the status of mental illness in our society. Those without the awareness or the resources to seek support are left helpless. This can lead to a variety of other problems as you said such as homelessness and inability to care for dependents. I think that as a society we need to remove stigmas associated with mental illness and raise awareness. Not only that, but make care more affordable and accessible. It seems that the primary people who are getting help with mental illness are those that can afford it or are so incapacitated they need to be institutionalized.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I think it's also important for legislatures and activists to understand the points we made in class. Homelessness is more than lack of a home--it has much deeper implications than simply lacking shelter. I think we need to understand the reasons that people are homeless in order to really help them. For example with your aunt, something she'd really benefit from is access to support for her mental health. Homelessness as multifaceted, and society should tackle it as such.