Anxiety Among Homeless Adolescents

The primary causes of homelessness can be there are a lack of affordable housing and the limited scale of housing assistance programs. Other causes can be insufficient income when people are frequently unable to pay for housing, food, childcare, health care and education. This means that difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of these necessities because of financial reasons. Some homeless people end up on the streets because they may be physical, psychological, sexual abuse, neglect or abandonment. A study done in 1992 found that 75 percent of street youth were victims of abuse and others were youths that left home when neither parent wanted custody of them after a divorce and some youth leave to escape parental restrictions that they consider to be too cruel. In 2000, an American study estimated that 20 percent of homeless youth had been in foster care before they moved to the streets and over 50 000 children run away from home.

Youth Homeless is a significant social issue that impacts a multitude of youth from all over the United States. There is a multitude of factors that can contribute to youth homelessness. Fortunately, the Covenant House in Michigan is committed to servicing homeless youth in Detroit. One of the core values of the agency, is immediacy therefore, the agency offers necessities such as shelter, safety, food and clothing rapidly to those in need. The Covenant House will not turn anyone away if they fall into the age range of 18-24 years old.

There are millions of homeless youth in America. On any given night, you can find these children ducking into abandoned buildings, crammed up against alley dumpsters, curled inside the big yellow slide of a local playground. I imagine they are thankful for sleep, wary of a new day, but thankful nonetheless. Homelessness at such a young age if left alone, leads to increased rates of conflict. The more homeless youths now, the more our country as a whole will have to deal with divorce, mental illness, and the need for government assistance.

Homeless youth face an abundance of challenges, especially if they are on their own, such as finding food, shelter, income, and potential medical expenses. Some youth experience additional hardship by facing the effects of abuse they endured at their previous place of residence. According to the National Conference of State Legislators (2013) 46 percent of runaway and homeless youth reported physical abuse, 38 percent reported emotional abuse, and 17 percent reported being forced into unwanted sexual activity by a family or household member. Therefore, the chances of emotional vulnerability are high.

Many youth who have or are still living on the streets have faced sexual or physical abuse from an adult at some point in their lives and the data states that 61% of all youth face this (McKay, E, (2009). Seeing the Possibilities. The Need for a Mental health Focus Amongst Street-Involved Youth: Recognizing and Supporting Resilience. Toronto: Wellesley Institute.). Approximately 1,500 – 2,000 homeless youth make up the total amount of homeless people sleeping on the streets every night in Toronto; this number is considerably large and it continues to grow because the issue of youth homelessness or homelessness in general is not thought of as a priority by various levels of government and therefore

Youth homelessness can be define as young individuals, ranging from age 12 to around 25, who are without any support from their families, and are either living on the streets or at a shelter. There are often “referred to as “unaccompanied” youth.” (National Coalition for Homelessness (NCH), 2007). Unaccompanied youths can be categorized as runaway-homeless youths, throwaways, and independent youths. Runaway- homeless youths are youths that leave home without any parental permission. Youths that leave their homes because parents encourage them to leave are categorize as throwaways. The final classified as independent youths who leave home because of family conflicts or other issues. (Aratani, 2009).

Societal, community, intrapersonal and the individual all are seen as contributing to the way a person approaches a health behavior. This framework has shown to be used extensively in explaining substance use among homeless adolescents. There is no single factor that causes homelessness or substance use, this framework acknowledges that and gives important information for prevention and treatment. There are many different reasons that youth become homeless. Ray (2006) found that family conflict was the primary cause of all homelessness in adolescents. Whatever the cause, the fact is that homeless adolescents need to have the focus of public health professionals to prevent increased numbers of HIV, and other blood-bore illnesses, drug overdoses, violence, and death.

The study was conducted to determine from the perceptions of professionals whether life experiences or becoming homeless was the traumatic event that triggered (PTSD) posttraumatic stress disorder amid the homeless adolescent population of Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill North Carolina. Participants included 12 professionals with experience of working with homeless adolescents ages 13-18, in regards, to posttraumatic stress disorder development. A questionnaire was utilized for 14 participants to gather the information for the study, in which, had an 85.7% response rate. The results did not determine whether it was life experiences or becoming homeless that was the traumatic event that triggered the development amid the homeless adolescent population in Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill. However, the study did yield a PTSD issue within the population and a lack of service providers to help address the issue. The study also revealed a need to further research the issue to identify the true scope of the problem and to implement services to help address the issue of PTSD amidst the population.

The study was conducted to determine from the perceptions of professionals on whether life experiences or becoming homeless was the traumatic event that triggered (PTSD) posttraumatic stress disorder amid the homeless adolescent population of Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Participants included 12 professionals with experience of working with homeless adolescents ages 13-18. A questionnaire was utilized for 14 participants to gather the information for the study, which had an 85.7% response rate. The results did not determine whether it was life experiences or becoming homeless that was the traumatic event that triggered the development of PTSD amid the homeless adolescent population in Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill. However, the study did yield a PTSD issue within the population and a lack of service providers for homeless adolescents. The study revealed a need to further research the issue to identify the actual scope of the problem and to implement services to help address the issue of PTSD among the population.

Other influences seen among the youth homeless population are problems with problematic behavior. In the 6-year study, some of the participants said that their leaving home was a result of their own problematic behavior (Mayock, Parker, Murphy, 2014). These problematic behaviors include drug/ substance use, criminal activity, anti social behavior and negative peer associations (Mayock & O’Sullivan, 2007). In some instances, the parents may have chosen to remove a young person from the home who has problematic behavior in hopes to relieve the issue and address the seriousness of the problem. (Smith et al.,

At eleven-years-old, my world was turned upside when I first volunteered at the Manna Soup Kitchen and became aware of the substantial issue of homeless youth. While serving the beautiful food I helped prepare, I recognized one of my best friends who I volunteered in the Southwest Conservation Corp with as she waited in line with no parent in sight. After eating her meal, she went into the thick woods behind the kitchen where she still continues to live. Curiously, I followed her and witnessed the horrific reality of homeless youth for all she had was a tent and a blanket in below freezing weather. The matter of homeless youth carries great importance with me because it affects the lives of a substantial amount of my friends and peers.

With youth homelessness continuing to rise, schools are not prepared to respond to the needs of these students. Homeless youth lack the adequate support within their schools to succeed academically, socio-emotionally, and mentally, resulting in homeless youth not given the opportunity to thrive in their current setting.

Theoretical Article This article attempts to offer an understanding of why higher rates of mental illness occur amongst homeless children despite their frequent use of mental health and other social services by providing a theoretical model. The theoretical model proposed to explain elevated rates of mental health problems among homeless children as the result of accumulated stress triggered by chronic instability, including housing instability and repeated service disruptions (school changes, social services disruptions, and social network disruption). Children in homeless families often experience various adverse circumstances such as extreme poverty, household chaos, family instability, and violence. And such adverse experiences, affect

Homeless youth suffer significant mental heath problems such as depression, substance abuse, suicidal thoughts, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorders. Many runaway youth already had some sort of mental problem due to problems at home, that are made worse by the difficult things that happen on the streets. Homeless youth are approximately 75% more likely to abuse substances to deal with their trauma. Also, 17% of homeless youth are HIV-positive, which may be a result of lack of proper hygiene or the prostitution that some teens are forced

Imagine a dark and scary ally, in a big city with tons of people. Then imagine looking down and seeing a girl that couldn’t be over the age of 16, laying on the ground curled in a ball with only a thin blanket covering her body. Just imagine her thin body shivering every time she took a breath. Just think about the last time she had a meal, how hungry she may be. Just think of the last time she had a shower, or the last time she got to sit in the warmth of a house. Even think of the last time she got to sleep in a bed with blankets, or maybe think of the last time she felt loved by her mother or father. This is a scenario that is real for some teens. Dosomething.org says that 34% of homeless people are under the age of 24.