Mental Health

Summary

Homelessness has contributed much to the increase in mental health cases around the globe. In the United States, the mental illnesses among the homeless populations are estimated to be double that of the non-homeless counterparts. The homeless population comprises of the street children and families with low or no income that cannot meet their necessities and pay rent. Homelessness has been attributed to the increase in the rates of unemployment, frequent hospitalizations, low or no income. The paper explains different aspects of homelessness and mental health illnesses as well as the juvenile delinquency. It covers the ways of promoting positive behaviors among the juveniles. Additionally, the paper addresses the issue of military and mental illnesses. The military is a group of people that are at high risk of mental illnesses especially after a War. They suffer from depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic disorders. The soldiers should undergo some mental diagnosis before they are released to reunite with their spouses and families. They are equipped with skills of coping with post-traumatic situations and moving on with their lives without the mental disturbances. There are various programs that ensure that the soldiers get mental health support after a War or after they retire to cope with the civilian life. The paper also addresses the issue of juvenile delinquency and the different support programs for them to acquire positive behavior. The programs include an educational development program, mentoring programs, and behavioral intervention programs. The programs can be initiated both at home and at school. The juveniles who drop out of school under the influence of peers result in urban violence. They trouble their successful counterparts. These juveniles can be rehabilitated by use of such programs.

Homeless population

Studies in the United States have revealed that the homeless population has a high risk of developing mental illnesses, compared to the non-homeless. The different types of the homeless population include the street children that are exposed to severe environmental conditions such as drug abuse and have a high susceptibility to becoming mentally ill. The trauma that the homeless population undergoes results to mental disorders and disturbances. The mental illnesses among the homeless populations are triggered by anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. They are always worried about their basic needs, indecency, and lack of access to the comforts of life (Gullickson, 1995). Their continuous worry results in mental disturbances. The population is also exposed to schizophrenia that is also a trigger for mental illnesses. Some societal factors such as unemployment, low income, and frequent hospitalizations contribute to a state of homelessness and consequent increase in the cases of mental illnesses (Gullickson, 1995). The unemployed find it difficult to meet their necessities and cannot afford a house to live. Besides, others have low wages that cannot pay them a house, resulting in homelessness or living in a substandard house. In addition, if one of the family members becomes chronically ill, the family may be deprived of their savings because of frequent hospitalizations, therefore, lacking enough capital for housing (Gullickson, 1995).

Homelessness increases the cases of mental illnesses. The condition makes the affected individuals result in a state of anxiety and depression that are risk factors for the mental illnesses. The depression and anxiety increase the negative thoughts in an individual making him/her vulnerable to mental disorders.

There are several programs that can be developed to support the homeless population. The housing programs include placing individuals and families in permanent homes or providing them with emergency shelters. The office of the special needs assistance program has commitment to end homelessness through the provision of funds for rehousing the individuals and families. Some of the existing housing programs include Rural Housing Stability Assistance Program, Continuum of Care Program, Shelter Care program, and the Supportive Housing Program among others (Gullickson, 1995).

The behavior therapy is crucial for the homeless population as it helps them deal with post-traumatic stress, as well as the behavior and emotional problems associated with homelessness to prevent them from developing mental disorders. The aim of behavior therapy is to increase the chances for positive experiences and reduce the chances of anxiety and depression among the homeless population (Gullickson, 1995).

Military and Mental Illness

Veterans suffer from various mental illnesses such as PTSD, depression, drug dependency as the effects of post-traumatic experiences. The depression and PSD affect their lifestyle in that they develop feelings of detachment, become hyper-vigilant and some go to the extent of experiencing sleep disturbances. Some have difficulties in concentrating and develop loss of appetite because of the mental disturbances.

The soldiers are subjected to a mental diagnosis to assess the possibility of disorders such as PTSD for necessary action before being allowed to return home. The mental health support includes behavior therapy to help them interact well with the family members and cope well with the society (Cesur, Sabia & Tekin, 2013). They are equipped with positive thinking to continue nursing their livelihood and interpersonal desires without mental disturbances. The behavioral health services include outpatient counseling in matters relating to anxiety and depression as well as homecoming. The Mental Health America distributes education materials to the soldiers to help them reunite with their spouses and families (Cesur, Sabia & Tekin, 2013).

The lives of soldiers are impacted differently on their service. The service is difficult, dangerous and demanding, and some find it difficult transitioning to the civilian life. However, some have an easy time adjusting to the social life (Cesur, Sabia & Tekin, 2013). After service in the war, soldiers are impacted differently in their works as some lack motivation because of the trauma and disturbances of the war. The experiences of the war make some to have disorders that result in violence at the workplace. Readjusting to life after service is often difficult, thus requires mental health support in both the workplace and social life to help people cope with post trauma.

Juvenile Delinquency

There are several factors that contribute to urban violence. For instance, growing in poor neighborhoods leads to non-completion of schools, lack of jobs and consequently engaging in urban violence (Çerekja, 2014). There is an association between urban violence and the low level of education and employment. People want to dominate others because they feel inferior and also want to find a way of living out of violence. Some youths form a gang that terrorizes people in urban areas because of peer influence. Most of the family members are either in colleges or working thus they have no control of them at many times. They become subject to peer influence making them initiate gangs that turn to urban violence in the form of petty crimes to get what they think their parents cannot help them acquire. Additionally, some of the urban violence is caused by the youth engaging in substance abuse, thus search for money to satisfy their desires (Johnson, Reichle & Monn, 2009). Family structure is also attributed to the behaviors that result in the urban violence among the juveniles. Children raised by single mothers have a high tendency of being influenced by others negatively and engaging in crime compared to the ones raised by a complete family with a father. Their mothers might not be strict with them that can make them easily turn to violence (Çerekja, 2014).

Some juveniles may want to turn to bullying to dominate their peers, intimidate or abuse them. Schools have different ways of handling juvenile behaviors such as bullying and school violence. The common methods include taking a strategic approach to strengthening bonds of the juveniles with their teachers and reducing the risk factors that can make them turn to violence (Johnson, Reichle & Monn, 2009). These include feelings of rejection and alienation. Some schools also develop clear and consistent standards of behavior that the juveniles must follow to avoid punishments. The ones that engage in bullying others or activities that result in violence are punished to avoid engaging in such behavior. The teachers have the responsibilities of teaching the juveniles the right behaviors in schools and leave the responsibility to their parents or guardians after school. However, the schools can play an integral part in improving juvenile behaviors after school by creating student assistance and after- school programs.

Additionally, the schools can help in developing programs to assist the juveniles change their unbecoming behaviors such as bullying others. Mentoring programs have identified a proven tool for addressing delinquent activities among the juveniles. The mentoring programs provide guidance and social responsibility skills among the youth at risk of negative behavior and violence (Çerekja, 2014).  They encourage the youth participation and enhance their benefit. The behavioral interventions are critical in promoting positive behaviors among the juveniles. Most behavioral interventions for the juveniles are community-based aimed at helping the youth with basic academic, social, and problem-solving skills. Some of the behavioral interventions in schools include the get-tough policies focusing on punishments to promote positive behaviors. Positive behavior interventions have been implemented in various schools and treatment programs (Çerekja, 2014).

Additionally, the juvenile education programs are vital in the correction of juvenile behavior. They provide essential educational services to the youth detained in various juvenile correction facilities. Besides, the educational programs equip them with competencies in language and arts, mathematics, social studies, and sciences.

References

Çerekja, B. (2014). Penal Mediation in the Framework of Juvenile Deliquency in Albania: Education or Re-education. Academic Journal Of Interdisciplinary Studies. doi:10.5901/ajis.2014.v3n6p431

Cesur, R., Sabia, J., & Tekin, E. (2013). The psychological costs of war: Military combat and mental health. Journal Of Health Economics, 32(1), 51-65. doi:10.1016/j.jhealeco.2012.09.001

Gullickson, T. (1995). Psychology on the Streets: Mental Health Practice with Homeless Persons. Psyccritiques, 40(9). doi:10.1037/004005

Johnson, L., Reichle, J., & Monn, E. (2009). Longitudinal mentoring with school-based positive behavioral support teams: Influences on staff and learner behavior. Evidence-Based Communication Assessment And Intervention, 3(2), 113-130. doi:10.1080/17489530903182152