The homeless community is one of the most severe social problems of modern times, as millions of people worldwide do not have a permanent roof over their heads. These individuals are not sufficiently protected by the state and cannot count on quality medical care and psychological well-being like other citizens. This paper aims to study daily life, needs, and future in a homeless group. For this purpose, I attended a charity event that was a free kitchen for everyone in need in my area. The second event was a vagrant meeting with a psychological specialist at a local healthcare center. The topic of this event was anger management and teaching how to use emotions properly in everyday life. This report will describe my feelings, expectations, and main lessons from this experience. Besides, counseling techniques and theoretical approaches for interacting with this group will be provided.
Events Attended
This study’s first activity was Hands of Hope America in Clermont, FL, a food pantry for those in need. It is a small house where the organization’s workers and volunteers come together to prepare ready-to-eat meals for people who come hungry. Employees are also responsible for packaging semi-finished products, cans, and food bags into boxes for onward transfer to other centers. My responsibility was to carry out orders from my supervisor, Mrs. Davis. It took a little over two hours as we had a high workload and numerous people to service. Hands of Hope America provided homeless and destitute individuals with chicken, rice, vegetables, cereals, desserts, pasta and cheese, and a few other options to choose from. It was a pleasant experience as my colleagues were friendly, and everyone understood that work is a boon for those who can not buy it.
The second activity is the Daily Planet HealthCare for the Homeless (DPHH), a lesson on anger management. I spent almost three hours there as an assistant instructor and was responsible for monitoring the homeless and their responses, assisting in group activities, and providing technical support. Mr. Roller is a certified psychologist and was my supervisor at the time. The exercises included a short introduction in a circle, breathing exercises, theoretical training, and practical advice for managing negative emotions. This community-based course is periodic and takes place every two weeks for free, but preliminary registration. Thirteen beggars attended that evening, and they were friendly to the staff and willing to learn. Thus, DPHH has shown the significance of psychological motivation for this cultural group in everyday life.
Comparison with Expectations
Caring for vulnerable communities is a psychologically responsible process as it requires empathy and proactiveness. In other words, I was prepared for the fact that representatives of this community have radically different values ​​and needs, and volunteers should respect them with understanding. The first activity, namely Hands of Hope America food pantry, was a challenging moral test for me. Homeless people came to the organization as a provider of their vitality, a helper in tough times, and their only ally. I was ready for such sensations, but it rose in the first minutes of volunteering there. I needed a conversation with the coordinators of the organization to stabilize my condition several times. The Hands of Hope America experience was similar to my expectations, but it was more contrasting and shocking to me.
The second activity was assisting in DPHH, which entirely corresponded to the assumptions about the cultural group. The homeless community is at risk of psychological difficulties, as they experience stress and polarized emotional states due to challenges in meeting basic needs. In turn, rage results from a struggle for survival in which the tramp lacks the practical skills to direct negative feelings. My practice was relatively positive and in line with the expectations and previously received information about the cultural group, as clients voluntarily underwent training and sought to reduce the level of aggression.
Emotional Impact
The displaced community suffers not only in social settings but also in health. It is no secret that these people do not have access to quality medical care on an ongoing basis, which complicates identifying this group at the national level. I was emotionally distressed while attending Hands of Hope America as I became personally acquainted with the homeless community’s daily challenges. I realized that not having a roof over my head and not knowing when the next meal will be received is enormous stress and a threat to my life. While food is a basic need, and most people do not think about its value in their kitchens, millions of individuals worldwide can only dream of this opportunity. To be this minority means to face the day-to-day labor of achieving the status of an ordinary person. Moreover, homeless people rely on charity and kindness, which in themselves are not sustainable. Thus, the shocking discovery was that society is not paying enough attention to their wealth, which covers food, shelter, and the assurance that tomorrow will not be their last.
Volunteering at DPHH gave more positive emotions as it showed the possibility of solving homeless people’s dilemmas. This community is faced with an everyday crisis of physical existence, and their concern cannot be addressed without long-term government intervention. However, psychological well-being and the practical ability to integrate into society can be taught by independent providers. It was an enjoyable emotional experience as I met various people who were pleasant to talk to, had their values, and did not give up due to unfavorable demographic characteristics. However, it had a tinge of sadness and anxiety, as the destitute have to spend much more time and energy on basic needs than most individuals. Thus, the lives of vagrants are full of pressures and vulnerabilities, but charities and concerned citizens can make their lives more peaceful.
This community’s cultural characteristics are specific, as they are influenced by everyday work to satisfy demands. I contacted visitors to the food pantry and healthcare center who did not have constant housing and a stable food source. However, they were exciting conversationalists and asked about my life, study, and community. The dialogue was relaxed and comfortable for both parties in each of the activities. Consequently, I have transformed my perception of the homeless community and formally erased the social line between us. I am infinitely grateful that my cultural background provides me with the essential elements of existence and growth. On the other hand, I began to understand displaced people’s values properly and their daily struggles to survive.
I described this experience this way, as I went through some emotional turmoil and rethought my outlook on life. Initially, I was aware that the homeless community has different goals and needs than other cultural groups. It is accurate, and the practical experience of volunteering confirms this argument. However, I expanded my understanding of vagabonds as social subjects and realized that we are equal and have identical rights in this world. Thus, describing emotions from personal interaction with this group seems the correct way to describe my role as a minority in meetings.
Key Things Learned
The main conclusions of this immersion project consist of a rethinking of social relations in terms of a person’s role concerning a wider population. In other words, the representation of an individual in a group occurs by demonstrating their values ​​and how they affect others. One of the critical things learned is that homeless people need first and foremost understanding from people with more favorable demographics. Society unwittingly presses on the homeless with their status, showing that access to the necessary existence tools is unequal. Consequently, this vulnerable group faces misunderstandings and misrepresentation in society as dangerous and aggressive individuals. I have proved to myself that this argument is stereotyped, and most displaced people tend to be conscious and intellectually grown people.
Another broader takeaway from this study is the weakness of the inequality education system. People perceive it as a distinctly existing structure that was created naturally, although it can be corrected. The central paradox is the deliberate separation of social relations and imbalance as separate concepts. One of the project’s conclusions is that people still have the same rights, needs, and desires to be assimilated into their communities. Hence, the homeless, white collar, ethnic minorities, the working class, and other social units must be treated equally by other people. Beggars are people who deserve respect for their desire to survive and become healthy and educated individuals. Thus, another significant finding of this design was that society could overcome inequality by increasing respect for any population member.
Counseling Theories Validated for This Group
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is relevant to this community, as analyzing and learning how to manage irrational feelings can deliberate public relations strategy. It was noted that it is sufficient for the homeless group and the people who work with them, revealing the causes of psychological challenges and offering long-term solutions (Pontoski Taylor et al., 2016). A similar technique is reality therapy, aiming to improve current relationships and reject past events as predictors of future actions (Mocan, 2018). This strategy is appropriate for working with the homeless, as their traumatic experiences correlate with actual mental barriers. A more specific counseling method is a client-centered model that addresses particular needs and adapts services to their demographic and psychological well-being (Pawson, 2019). It is equally useful for individual and community administration, such as discussing personal issues and providing affordable housing. Each of the presented theories was used to varying degrees in my volunteering practice, as the supplier sought to find out and solve the client’s problem directly.
The miracle question or the solution-based counseling technique allows one to forget the current problem and imagine life without it temporarily. This method is beneficial for psychologically vulnerable people, including the homeless, who suffer from a personality crisis and uncertainty of the future (Zhang et al., 2020). Another model, namely mindfulness, correlates with reality therapy, as both seek to free the client from the burden of the past and provide improved awareness of current life values ​​(Shapero et al., 2018). Reflective or active listening is essential for establishing a connection between the supplier and the customer so that rationalization of the dilemma allows for a joint solution to enhance the situation in the future (Kohpeima Jahromi et al., 2016). Thus, all three counseling techniques describe a qualitative relationship between the homeless and the caregiver to make the vagrant’s ability to enjoy life more applicable in reality.
References
Kohpeima Jahromi, V., Tabatabaee, S., Esmaeili Abdar, Z., & Rajabi, M. (2016). Active listening: The key of successful communication in hospital managers.Electronic Physician, 8(3), 2123-2128. Web.
Mocan, D. (2018). Complementary aspects in reality therapy and person-centered therapy.Open Journal for Psychological Research, 2(1), 21-26. Web.
Pawson, Q. (2019). A client-centred approach to homelessness. VincentCare. Web.
Pontoski Taylor, K., Cunningham, A., Schultz, L., Jager-Hyman, S., Sposato, R., Evans, A., Beck A., & Creed T. (2016). Using a cognitive behavioral framework to train staff serving individuals who experience chronic homelessness.Journal of Community Psychology, 44(5), 674-680. Web.
Shapero, B., Greenberg, J., Pedrelli, P., de Jong, M., & Desbordes, G. (2018). Mindfulness-based interventions in psychiatry.Focus – American Psychiatric Association Publishing, 16(1), 32–39. Web.
Zhang, X., Shi, X., Xu, S., Qiu, J., Turel, O., & He, Q. (2020). The effect of solution-focused group counseling intervention on college students’ internet addiction: A pilot study.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(7), 2519. Web.