Hi, how\u2019s it going? Hope you are doing well.<\/p>\n
There was a news story that I was following the other day. It said that in the city of San Diego,<\/p>\n
California, some shops were posting stickers in their windows that read \u201cDon\u2019t Feed Our Bums.\u201d The news report was asking for opinions on whether this was cruel or a good way to handle a legitimate concern.<\/p>\n
They got many answers that went both ways. One in particular struck me: A man saying that no one should ever help homeless people because one of them threw rocks at him. I\u2019ve seen people who weren\u2019t homeless act just as cruel. Does that mean that every homeless person is that way? Of course not!<\/p>\n
There was another comment that was left that astounded me, also, but not in a bad way this time. A woman was talking about how she had become homeless because of a series of events that she couldn\u2019t control. She mentioned that she had never pan-handled the entire time she was homeless. Instead, she stayed in shelters where she worked to earn her stay and food.<\/p>\n
She went to school while she was homeless, and eventually got a job and managed to get a place of her own again. But she made a very valid point: Not everyone who is homeless is there because they want to be, or because it is their fault.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s another point for you to consider: Many people who are homeless are so because of unmanaged mental illnesses, such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Now, many of you have probably heard that many people with schizophrenia become homeless, but did you know the same is true with bipolar?<\/p>\n
I knew a girl once who repetitively became homeless for short periods of time, mostly because her mood swings made it impossible for her to stay in one place for very long. Not to mention she would burn bridges to relationships that could have helped her. She had bipolar disorder, and, for at least one period of time, ended up in a homeless shelter.<\/p>\n
To this day, she still does not live on her own, but by following her treatment plan and learning new skills and strategies for coping, she now makes a much better roommate than she ever did before.<\/p>\n
Usually when a person who has bipolar disorder becomes homeless, they were not on their medications. Or maybe they were taking their medications, but not reporting to their psychiatrist that the medications weren\u2019t working for them.<\/p>\n
Sometimes it happens because of money. When manic, they might spend everything that they had for rent, and next thing you know, they\u2019ve been evicted. Sometimes it happens because of relationship problems. This is especially true in roommate situations, or when living with family.<\/p>\n
How many times does a person who has bipolar disorder \u2013 and is not following their treatment plan \u2013 mess up their relationships? Sometimes it is fixable, sometimes not. Sometimes it is enough that if the person was providing them housing, they decide that they can no longer do so for them.<\/p>\n
Can you see how any of these different factors could lead to homelessness? So yes, I would say that those stickers, and any attitude towards the homeless that is all-inclusive, is cruel. Not all homeless people act the same way, and it\u2019s a shame if a select few ruin it for the rest of them.<\/p>\n
It is a personal choice if someone chooses to help them, and on what level. But at the very least, we need to understand that our loved ones could easily be there. Doesn\u2019t that make you want to go give them a hug and be glad that they\u2019re not?<\/p>\n
What are your thoughts on this?<\/p>\n
Well, I have to go!<\/p>\n
Your Friend,<\/p>\n
Dave<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hi, how\u2019s it going? Hope you are doing well.<\/p>\n
There was a news story that I was following the other day. It said that in the city of San Diego,<\/p>\n
California, some shops were posting stickers in their windows that read \u201cDon\u2019t Feed Our Bums.\u201d The news report was asking for opinions on whether this was cruel or a good way to handle a legitimate concern.<\/p>\n
They got many answers that went both ways.<\/p>\n