Understanding the Impact of Brain Chemistry on Social Functioning – Addressing Homelessness

Some people’s brain chemistry does not allow them to function in the social construct of society.

It makes sense; history has proven that for every system that is put into place, there will be exceptions. It is virtually impossible to make it perfect for every citizen and for every need.

Hold on before you make this a capitalist and socialist debate; that’s not the case nor the point here although it can be tied into this topic of discussion.

This is about mental health and how many, no matter the environment, cannot function in the social construct. There is homelessness in every country, even places like Denmark.

Several weeks ago, I was watching Chicago Med, and one of the character’s mothers refused to live indoors. “I can’t be inside,” she told her daughter, who was a medical professional.

Instead, the woman chose to live in her van in homeless encampments. Ironically, that is where she felt the safest, much to the dismay of her daughter, of course. This plotline went on for several episodes until it was wrapped up, and I remember being left thinking about how society’s construct does not always benefit every member.

It’s a hard thing to do because everyone is wired differently, and so we never know what system would benefit them the most; however, we try to build systems that benefit the majority, well, at least that’s the initial purpose.

But in this particular case, the woman, the mother of the daughter, just couldn’t be inside, and it hit me that some people feel suffocated by the walls of society on a broader and more microscopic level.

In this case, the woman’s own mental health already enclosed her, and adding more walls made her feel like she couldn’t breathe; hence, living outside felt like a relief rather than an obstacle needed to be beaten.

Yesterday, I was at the bus stop on my way to pick up some printer paper, and this homeless lady was trudging up the slope-slanted hill with a tattered suitcase and a bowl of microwaved udon noodles in her other hand.

She made it up the hill and stopped a couple of feet from me, where suddenly I heard slurping noises. I turned to see her scoffing down her noodles. We made brief eye contact before I turned back to minding my business.

For some reason, she reminded me of the plotline from the show. Perhaps it was because, just like the woman on the show, she was older, thin, and white, the only common ground the two shared.

It made me realize that we have been focusing on homelessness as a whole instead of segments. It is unfeasible to house every single person on the street.

For every single person that wants to be housed, there is one that doesn’t, and that is the hard truth.

Several years ago, long before the pandemic, someone I know tried to get a friend of hers help, and he refused it outright. He had social security coming in and government-aided assistance with food, and he told her he’d rather stay on the streets.

This friend of mine is no stranger to the homeless and has a concerning amount of bravery for befriending even those that would make you hesitate walking near them.

Over the years, she has said that too many of them don’t want the additional stress of having to pay for housing and fit in with society’s way of doing things with their already fragile state of mind.

This comes back to my realization that perhaps we are focusing on the homeless problem all wrong. Social justice warriors might argue differently, but hear me out.

What good would it do to force someone to live within a home against their own will?

How are we going to like them as neighbors when we find that some of their chosen activities do not stop behind closed walls?

Think of the stories where a former homeless addict was given free housing assistance but squandered their chances by continuance of their behavior, even going as far as inviting their unsavory companions over, causing them to risk and eventually lose their housing.

For the ones that do want to get off the street and get help, absolutely, we should have systems in place.

Not many people wake up one day and decide to just do hardcore drugs for the heck of it.

Often trauma and environmental factors have a heavy role in their choice of reprieve amongst the biggest factor – mental health.

Someone who finds reprieve for the first time ever from their schizophrenia from lighting up a pipe will be incentivized to do it again.

For those of us who have been fortunate enough to dodge profound mental health diagnoses, we should be thankful that we can handle the weight of the world and the current construct and participate.

This is not saying that we don’t have our own issues and personal problems and stress that we deal with on a day-to-day or yearly basis; however, this isn’t just tied to us, those who end up on the street have had the same issues piled on top of a profound mental health disorder.

Going back to the original point of this post when it comes to addressing the homeless population, it is important to understand just like with all groups and individuals that we do not bunch them all together.

• Some do not want to be housed.
• Some do want to be housed.
• Not all homeless are addicts.
• Not all addicts are homeless.
• Not all homeless are unshaven and tattered.
• Not all homeless are mentally ill.
• Not all homeless cause destruction.
• There are homeless workers living in their cars because the cost of living is simply too much.
• There are homeless families who have been hit by unfortunate tragedies/circumstances.

When we group all the above into one category as just ‘the homeless population’ without differentiation, we are doing a majority of them an injustice.

When it comes to those who find relief from living outdoors while already dealing with a trapped mind, ever heard the saying ‘their mind is like a prison,’ the objective shouldn’t be to house them but to make designated encampments safer.

For those that want off the streets, we should have funds directed towards programs that are efficient in getting them the proper help needed for transitioning back into society and long-term functioning.

No one should ever lose the roof over their head because rent is now too sky-high, and this part I believe is a moral failure of our current system when profit is justified over human survival.

• There should be restructured safety nets/laws/policies if we are going to continue to operate the way we do under the current system.

For the percentage that does cause destruction and chaos and are dangers to those who are functioning members of society without threats to others – I do believe the same harsh laws should apply devoid of sympathy because we cannot overlook destruction and danger.

Of course, there are exceptions to the rule. Someone who has never harmed anyone but experiences a mental break and ends up causing harm to someone or something is going to be a different case from someone who is repeatedly caught and released.

Some propose jail time isn’t what is needed, sure, okay then, but then the mental institution is the last resort (which is another problematic system but that is another article for another day) – we cannot help someone that does not or cannot help themselves.

With that said, these are my thoughts, and as always, they are subject to change over the years. Dutifully note that I don’t claim to have all the answers. For now, I view this as my own personal essay on the subject matter and have written enough for the time being.

Thanks for reading.