Poverty And Mental Health Essay

Improved Essays
Poverty is an issue that 15% of the United States’ population deals with. Not only do they deal with the struggles of providing for themselves or their family, they also are also struck with something of equal influence. Mental health has recently been a critical topic of discussion. The connection between poverty and mental health issues has been researched and researchers have found that those who are in low income environments at at a higher risk of developing a mental health issue. With this research showing this connection we as a society need to take action to helping the people who develop these issues. Studies have shown that many people do not receive care due to location, when help has been given, those studies showed that psychological intervention has helped more than financial intervention. With these studies showing us these connections we need …show more content…
There are mental health facilities out there and financial support programs hey there are flaws with these easement options. The facilities are not located in the most efficient places, and the type of aid is not always the most effective. The most effective form of aid is psychological. This form of aid is truly beneficial because it breaks down the effects of poverty on the mind and allows the patient to have a clearer mind going forward. Mental health interventions have shown that they increase in mental health and financial status. It is also important to note that these psychological treatment options need to be inviting for those in need. It is hard enough for them to live with their illness while also worrying about income and adding a fear or treatment services will not benefit them in any way. “Engaging people living in poverty in support groups, thus giving them the opportunity to talk to other allowing them to have the person on person connection everyone needs” (Topham

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Many individuals are afraid to seek healthcare for their mental illness because they do not want others to know and do not want to be associated with the stigma. Advanced Practice Nurses can advocate for patients and provide resources in obtaining help. Other individuals who live in poverty with a mental diagnosis may not be able to afford the help he or she may need. Shipler (2009, p. 53) reports, “Depression is a frequent companion of poverty.” Those living in poverty suffering from a mental illness cannot afford the resources needed.…

    • 703 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Low-Income Vulnerable Population The vulnerable population of low income clients encompasses a large range of people who encounter special challenges other than just their income that contributes to the stratification of their vulnerability. Low-income families have “stressful social disorganization” as a normative reality of life, often needing additional support services in order to survive. The low-income population is normally represented by poverty, destitution, and unemployment.…

    • 2195 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ideally, all who seeks to better their mental health should have the right to do so, regardless of their ability to pay. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, in this scenario, I would consider the most important clients, which I see as those struggling with addiction and severe mental illness. As an example, because of the termination of behavioral health care in my city, there has been a rise in drug-related arrests, suicide-related hospitalization, and imprisonment of mentally ill individuals. Amidst dwindling resources, a counselor must continue to facilitate the needs of the client as best they can.…

    • 431 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Our social safety net is poor despite all we spend on health care; this means that despite initiatives to keep those who are most vulnerable to poverty from falling below poverty level, it is hard to do so (Rachlis, 2005). Mentally ill patients are discriminated against in the workplace because they are seen as independent or unreliable. This makes it more difficult to find a steady source of income and avoid falling into poverty levels. Institutionalization may treat some patients but when these facilities close down and the patients are put back into the environment that made them ill, it does no good. This illustrates the “revolving door syndrome” in…

    • 2044 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Poverty is a lot more than just not having enough money to afford basic necessities, poverty takes over the lives of those who experience and leaves them with lasting trauma. Poverty deprives people of life and opportunity, it strips them of social acceptance, and fills people with humiliation. The lives of the impoverished are no lives at all filled with layers of traumatic experiences so much so that poverty becomes a part of their identities. In articles like The Trauma of Poverty as Social Identity by Nancy Hudson and What Makes You Think I’m Poor? and in books like Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the way that poverty affects the mental wellbeing of people are clearly highlighted and emphasized. Those in poverty must suffer the alienation, desperation, and the several…

    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Mental Health Panel Discussion Community development can be defined as “working with people at a local level to promote active participation in identifying local needs, and organizing those needs” (Wright, 2004, pp.36). Community development is an active process, and values local participation, while promoting self-reliance. Community development is important in all communities, as it empowers community members, as well as creates authentic partnerships. There are many forms of community development such as asset based community development, and community building through individual, institutional, structural, and post structural change. Community development can occur through various ways, such as community meetings, events, and art.…

    • 1269 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    There are 150 homeless people housed in the Central Iowa Shelter in the summer, and 400 cram into the same space to escape the cold in the winter months. 33% of homeless people have a severe mental illness as well, which adds to, if not initiates, their hardships (Homeless Mentally Ill par. 1). I once encountered one of these people at a soup kitchen. The man was very open about his mental illness and his positive experience in a mental hospital. Unfortunately, the mental hospital was shut down, and he was forced onto the streets, relying on soup kitchens to survive.…

    • 1333 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Poverty is an issue that has plagued the United States for decades, and it is treated much like a rash, for people tend to not recognize poverty until it flares up and infiltrates their daily life. Poverty can infiltrate the lives of the middle and upper classes through a rise in their areas homeless population, crime, and taxes. Frankly, however, poverty is not a major issue because of its effects on the upper and middle classes; poverty is an issue because of the devastating effects it has on those who live at or below the poverty line. Furthermore, the causes of poverty may be even more distressing than the effects, for the causes of poverty are vast and interrelated. The inhabitation of disadvantaged communities, lack of an education and…

    • 157 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For most, the word poverty suggests an inability to provide food, water, clothing and shelter. According to the 2012 U.S. Census, poverty rates have many variables between ethnic groups. In 2012, 27.8% blacks and 22.3% of Hispanics were impoverished, compared to 8.4% of non-Hispanic whites and 12.1% of Asians. Minority families headed by single-women particularly experience a higher rate of poverty than of families headed by single-men, or married couples, so it makes sense why children are the age group most significantly affected by poverty. Regardless of location, these communities that are victim to poverty by pathology are very low-quality neighborhoods, with bad schools, and little to no job availability.…

    • 694 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Domestic Poverty Essay

    • 1227 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Problem Statement Domestic poverty has become a significant issue that impacts many people. Despite various measures that have been implemented by the federal and state governments, there continues to be a growth in poverty levels in America. The majority of Americans are unable to meet basic needs such as paying for food, housing, and clothing. In some cases, individuals are forced to have two or more jobs and work long hours at each job to ensure that they have enough money to meet their basic needs (Billitteri, 2007).…

    • 1227 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Six studies done in Africa (Zimbabwe, Lesotho), Asia, (Indonesia and Pakistan) and Latin America (Brazil and Chile) showed a direct correlation between poverty and mental health problems (World Health Organization). Poor people are at more likely to suffer from depression due to the hardships they face because of their poverty and their lack of adequate care (Cruz). Paulo Rossi Menezes (Poor Mental Health), who is a professor of medicine at the University of Sao Paulo, expresses that the two are closely linked: “There is a clear relationship between standard of living and common mental disorders.” This ties poverty into the issue more directly as the research shows that those in impoverished countries are more likely to develop a mental illness that often goes untreated (Mental Health in Developing Countries). So to solve the issues of mental health, poverty needs to be seriously addressed as well.…

    • 1768 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Homeless Vs Homeless Essay

    • 1731 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Introduction People that are homeless and have a mental illness are major socio-economic problems in the United States. According to the newspaper USA Today, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development reports that more than 124,000 or one fifth of the 610,000 homeless people across the USA suffer from a severe mental illness. Some of the major psychiatric conditions include schizophrenia, delusional disorder, bipolar disorder and severe depression. Theise psychiatric conditions can be treated with appropriate medication and counseling but can be dangerous if left untreated. In the absence of such psychiatric care, the annual federal governmental cost increases as hospitalization for this population is very expensive.…

    • 1731 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Brilliant Essays

    [Accessed 6 Nov. 2015]. Royal College of Psychiatrists, (2010). No health without public mental health. [online] London: Royal College of Psychiatrists, p.21. Available at: http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/pdf/Position%20Statement%204%20website.pdf [Accessed 9 Nov. 2015].…

    • 662 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Brilliant Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the United States, one of the richest countries in the world, why are so many people in poverty? According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the “official poverty rate in 2014 was 14.8 percent, which means there were 46.7 million people in poverty” (U.S. Census Bureau). Poverty is an important and emotional issue. To understand poverty in the United States, it is essential to look behind these numbers to see the actual living conditions of the individuals the government deems to be poor. The U.S. Census Bureau uses a set of guidelines to determine if families meet that poverty threshold.…

    • 1463 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nowadays, education has become a popular topic in our society; governments are also paying more attention to educational problems for young people. What is good education? Good education not only teaches one the essential working skills, but also prepares people’s mind to make rational, healthy and intelligent decisions in any situation. As a potential result, it may make one a better person in all aspects of one’s life. Governments that provide a good education for youths may help the poor to overcome poverty.…

    • 741 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays