{"id":17619,"date":"2021-11-22T09:00:10","date_gmt":"2021-11-22T14:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=17619"},"modified":"2022-10-09T06:02:32","modified_gmt":"2022-10-09T10:02:32","slug":"warning-signs-of-homelessness-and-how-to-offer-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/warning-signs-of-homelessness-and-how-to-offer-help\/","title":{"rendered":"Warning Signs of Homelessness and How to Offer Help"},"content":{"rendered":"
Although we know homelessness\u00a0<\/span>can happen to anyone<\/span><\/a>, it\u2019s easy to assume it\u2019s always happening to someone else, somewhere else. It\u2019s a sad, painful reality we try to distance ourselves from, if only mentally. But if we face enough hardship and bad luck, it\u2019s important to keep this in mind: it can happen to ourselves and our loved ones.<\/span><\/p>\n The kind of poverty that leads to homelessness doesn\u2019t typically happen all at once. There\u2019s usually a process. Even if all it seems to take is one big event, that person was probably already at risk for homelessness somehow. This means there are warning signs for homelessness. It also means that if we pay close attention, we might be able to help.<\/span><\/p>\n The tricky part is, many people don\u2019t want others to know they\u2019re homeless or at-risk. Shame and embarrassment often prevent people from telling others they\u2019re struggling and asking for help. Even though homelessness is so common, and many of us are closer to it than we realize, that urge to distance ourselves\u2014and let others be distanced from us when we\u2019re struggling\u2014can get in the way of us coming together.<\/span><\/p>\n For this reason, it\u2019s crucial to be able to recognize the warning signs of homelessness. Stigma and shame will probably try to get in the way of you being there for your loved ones, so you need to be ahead of it. You also need to know how to respond. Talking about homelessness shouldn\u2019t be as hard as it is. However, helping a loved one who is facing it, and having those conversations even when it\u2019s hard, goes a long way toward normalizing it.<\/span><\/p>\n People who are at-risk for becoming homeless, or already are, may have any of the following behaviors, habits, or characteristics.<\/span><\/p>\n People who are homeless may go several days without showering because they simply don\u2019t have access to a shower. Their hair may be dirty, or they may wear the same clothes several days in a row. Men may be unshaven. Other grooming habits may not be a high priority, like getting haircuts.<\/span><\/p>\n Homelessness is a highly stressful situation. People facing it behave differently than those with a secure roof over their heads. Examples of stress-induced behaviors include:<\/span><\/p>\n Homeless people are likely to run into problems with schedules and deadlines. This may be because they don\u2019t have a reliable car or reliable technology. People who are homeless may have many absences from school or work or show up late more often than not.<\/span><\/p>\n They might become defensive when asked direct questions about where they live. Again, the shame runs deep in homelessness; people in the trenches of it may avoid or seem embarrassed when asked questions about their housing status. This is why it\u2019s imperative to avoid making assumptions.<\/span><\/p>\n Homelessness, by definition, comes with disorganization. It\u2019s normal for a person who is homeless to have their belongings in three separate places. This especially causes problems for children in school. They may arrive without a backpack or with a backpack but missing essentials like a notebook.<\/span><\/p>\n Missing important records is another sign of homelessness. It\u2019s hard to keep easy access to documents, so immunization records or birth certificates may get lost or stuck somewhere else.<\/span><\/p>\n Homeless people are more likely to be sick due to exposure to the elements or crowding of people in a shelter. Poor hygiene can also contribute to health problems, such as skin rashes. Lack of insurance can contribute to poor dental health or the inability to see a doctor. Lack of sleep due to not having a safe and comfortable environment to sleep in can also cause health problems.<\/span><\/p>\n It can seem difficult to approach someone with concerns about homelessness simply because it\u2019s a sensitive topic. Regardless of whether or not it\u00a0<\/span>should<\/span><\/em>\u00a0be sensitive, it is, and we need to respect others\u2019 space. Being aware of the shame that often comes with topics of homelessness helps us to be more sensitive.<\/span><\/p>\n That\u2019s why it\u2019s never a good idea to directly ask someone if they are homeless based on one or two warning signs. If you point out that they\u2019ve worn the same shirt three days in a row and ask if that means they\u2019re homeless, you probably won\u2019t get the kind of response you\u2019re hoping for. Behavioral observations are good clues, but if you want to offer help, it\u2019s important to have an honest conversation, free of assumptions and judgment.<\/span><\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to be rich yourself, or a landlord, or have a spare room in your house to help someone facing homelessness. Helping might look like referring them to an agency in your area that offers housing services. It could be as simple as giving them a hotline number to call in the event of a crisis. Or maybe that person just needs someone to listen and offer empathy\u2014it isn\u2019t always about fixing, even if we want to fix it. Care and compassion go a long way toward helping, even if we can\u2019t immediately see it.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Although we know homelessness\u00a0can happen to anyone, it\u2019s easy to assume it\u2019s always happening to someone else, somewhere else. It\u2019s a sad, painful reality we try to distance ourselves from, if only mentally. But if we face enough hardship and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":17621,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10139],"tags":[15909,16720,1052,253,832,515,508,16719,16718],"coauthors":[9291],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17619"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17619"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17619\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17620,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17619\/revisions\/17620"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17619"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17619"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17619"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=17619"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What Are the Warning Signs of Homelessness?<\/h3>\n
Poor Hygiene<\/h4>\n
Stress-induced Behaviors<\/h4>\n
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Difficulty Keeping a Schedule<\/h4>\n
Defensiveness When Asked Questions<\/h4>\n
Lack of Organization<\/h4>\n
Health Problems<\/h4>\n
What Can I Do to Help?<\/h3>\n
So, how do you do that? Here are a few ideas:<\/span><\/h4>\n
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