Emotional Hardship of Homelessness

Homelessness, many of us have become familiar with this term, because its on the rise around the western world, even in America the foundation of the world economy. Many of us , know of it because we have experienced it first hand by being there or having a family or friend experience. We can speak of the numbers all day, but what is the emotional toll? 

On fist look, we know that one of the root causes is personal crisis.For reasons out of your control( ie: family disputes, job loss, addiction, metal illness, past or current behavioral issues) you face the emotional distraught of knowing you did not do enough,, you let yourself and others down, you end up segregated against your comfort zone, you face discrimination, you lose all material belongings, you face large debts. A loss of control at every turn. You do this all alone, friends helping where they can. The responsibility is placed on the person, though, many things they did not control.

From here, we travel with a new member of a nomadic group wondering our streets. Here everything comes with an agenda, and strings attached. Not the welcoming site for someone fresh to trauma caused by a personal financial crisis. In this new world, you can be who you choose, you can make your own story, your own new name. No privacy is given, no trust is offered, everything has a catch. Safety is knowledge and withheld information. freed from debt, you find a world of time to do as you wish, limited access to your basis needs. Any college graduate could tell you here we find a total lack of foundation for Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. More than that we can see a slow, separation of personality, a disconnect from common societal values, a more primal being taken over.

Add sleep deprivation, lack of hygiene, lack of nutrition, added anxiety and you have a strong need for self medicating. This leads to a soothing addiction. A little something everyday, to numb the emotional trauma, the reoccurring displacement , the physical strain on the body, the spiritual depravity, and the mental lies played on the mind. It quite possible at this point, a person homeless, actually loses mental stability. A new person is born, unable to reach the hurt person that was traumatized, re-traumatized and repeatedly displaced. As a young lady once told me and others, everyone who has been homeless one day suffered from Post Traumatic Syndrome disorder.
While the original trauma was never dealt with and worked through, the effected person was forced to continue living in their circumstance. This means finding a place to stay, staying in motels, alley ways, tunnels, shelters, sidewalks, etc. A lack of storage and a hardship of not being able to obtain new property, leads to loss of property by theft, arbitrary government regulation, Each time the person is made to leave their place of existence and rest, they remember the day they originally lost everything, they struggle with not being able to stay. The feel the let downs, guilt and memory disconnect as that original day. every time they lose an item , it sets off that memory. In the course of seeking help or trying to survive and recoup, we as a society without knowledge further traumatize, those hardest hit by poverty. We then wonder how to break down their walls to treat the source of their trauma. 

The old person, was outgoing, charismatic, positive, willing to help. The new person is disconnected, unable to properly maneuver through basic government or daily tasks, emotional unstable and self serving. We then misunderstand why when we offer services meant to help. the person refuses to accept, not because they don't need them but because the emotional and traumatic toll, the mistrust with authority is highly present and placing a wall. 

So where do we go from here? That I do not know, other than to seek help. I would suggest funding permanent solutions rather than band aids, criminalization. Advise anyone if you want to help, first you educate yourself, second you listen to those you are trying to help, third you listen to those already trying to help , fourth you look at the gaps and missing pieces. Last you act accordingly. 10 million+ homeless in america, and whose listening? Not Wall street, not Washington. There is something wrong when you can gather over 50 people in one place and nobody is trying to get their hands dirty for a good cause. The trama needs to be treated, the houseless community must be made part of the conversation as well as being allowed to lead the solutions they call for, as well as a houseless bill of rights for a disfranchised people whose rights are not respected by those in power. Otherwise we are treating the homeless no different than every other minority group in america and furthering the agenda of aristocratic Europe, the oligarchy of wall street, and the jim crow south.