Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc.
(Publication Archives)

Community Connections, Spring 2003

Four Points
By Renée G. Benson, MA CSW Managing Director, MHANYS

Point 1: Access is paramount. Individuals living with mental illness often encounter prejudice and discrimination when seeking a home. This is made evident when new housing, and particularly group homes, are proposed for people with mental illness, and a Not-In-My-Back-Yard mentality asserts itself. Not only do individuals need access to housing, but they need it to be affordable. Disabilities often make it difficult to maintain employment, or require an individual to work reduced hours for reduced wages. Where housing demands are greater than the supply, those with limited access often end up either homeless, or in low income or in substandard housing. Housing provided through mental health service agencies that allow housing for families is even scarcer.

Point 2: Let's face it, all people feel better when they feel accepted and integrated into the community. Integration applies to employment, community meetings, and participation in any activity in which an individual might participate. People living with mental illness are often isolated. One reason this happens is because of the location of the housing. If the housing is located in a remote area, the residents can't get to appointments because of transportation issues and limited local public transportation.

Point 3: Everyone wants to live in a safe home and community, but when someone is already dealing with anxiety or other issues such as a posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a paranoid personality disorder, paranoid schizophrenia, or other disorders, the environment is of even more concern. The disorder could be exacerbated or the recovery progress impeded. Additionally, we know that trauma can lead to PTSD. Experiencing violent crimes, even witnessing crimes, can cause trauma, and the longer the exposure and the more severe the trauma, the greater the injury. Housing in low-income developments needs to be designed to ensure that the development is safe to increase preventive efforts and rehabilitative opportunities.

Point 4: Stability in housing is a necessary element in helping a person maintain a treatment regimen. One woman I know shared the great anxiety she felt while living in a low-income public housing development. She said her apartment was inspected annually, and each time she feared that the inspectors would be unhappy with her housekeeping and that she'd lose her apartment. She spent many anxious months each year trying to cope with this fear. She worried about becoming homeless.

What we can we do? We can get informed. (Check out the resource list in this edition and learn about one's rights.) We can participate and advocate. Public input about such matters is often very low, despite some genuine efforts by HUD, by planning departments, and by transportation departments, as well as statutory requirements to encourage input. We can begin outreach and networking with people in those planning and transportation departments and share our concerns. We can't get what we need without explaining to them what we need.

posted 6/13/03