Detroit and the surrounding area was one of the hardest hit during the recession of 2007. We are used, unfortunately, to hearing the stories of those who lost their homes to foreclosure after they lost their jobs. Thousands upon thousands in southeast lower Michigan fell victim to this devastating combination. What we do NOT often hear is the emotional/mental fallout from these events.
The loss of a job in times when the economy is healthy is bad enough. It creates stress on the unemployed and the entire family unit. But when the economy is poor there are extra stresses and pressures. The outlook for finding a new job is not good, with many more people vying for each and every position. Even if a person is fortunate enough to qualify for unemployment benefits UI doesn't last forever. Those who run out of benefits before finding a new job are under the added stress of being unable to pay the mortgage and other bills. If the situation goes on long enough, even putting food on the table is a huge issue. So is being able to go to the doctor when they are ill. In short, everyday necessities are not being met.
There are physical issues that arise in these circumstances, those connected with hunger, those connected to not seeing a doctor when needed, those involved with not having a roof over one's head. Those are the effects which we most readily see. But there are some things even worse than losing a job and losing a home. Dan Quayle reportedly summed it up quite well (albeit accidentally) when he said, "A mind is a terrible thing to lose."
Many, many people who have gone through all the above losses eventually crack under the pressure and fall into some form of mental illness, whether it is depression or psychosis or some other form. The result is the same: those who have lost almost everything else now are faced with losing themselves. The horror of falling into the abyss of untreated mental illness cannot be overstated. With the loss of a sense of self properly grounded in reality, the person has lost about everything. That is, in part, why the suicide rate goes up in recessions. Great loss creates great depression.
The extremely sad part is that, as a person falls into mental illness, the chances of getting a job and getting one's life back steadily decreases. It becomes a vicious cycle. When there is no hope, there is depression and suicidal thoughts. When there is depression there is disability. Where there is disability, the chances for employment go down. And so it goes.
That is the reality of many, too many, citizens in Michigan (and in the US) these days. So many people, especially those who are over 50 (who face discrimination in job interviews and the job hunting process) give up. Far too many see only one way out: suicide. Some succeed, leaving family and friends behind to deal with the aftermath. Others do not and succeed only in making their situation worse.
What, then, is a desperate person in SE Michigan to do? What resources are available for those who have fallen through society's cracks?
(End Part 1)
