Father Joe’s Villages
Behavioral Health Services
The trauma that comes with trying to survive on the streets can be overwhelming, leading to a manifestation of unhealthy coping mechanisms. For those already enduring mental health conditions, the complications of homelessness can intensify their symptoms.
No matter what circumstances bring them to Father Joe’s Villages, people experiencing homelessness and mental health challenges in San Diego deserve dignity and access to care. That is why the comprehensive Behavioral Health Services offered through Father Joe’s Villages’ Village Health Clinic are so crucial. Through these services, struggling neighbors can gain the tools they need to manage their mental health symptoms.
Neighbors like Glenn, an Army veteran who served in the Vietnam War. Glenn’s time working in the Chemical Warfare Unit during the Vietnam War left him with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and severe mental health issues that caused hallucinations and dissociation. For long periods of time, Glenn would be unable to process the reality around him. His mental health struggles made maintaining steady employment challenging, and eventually led to his homelessness. “Living out on the streets can be overwhelming,” Glenn explained. “When all the people walk by you, you never know if they are going to give you a dollar, some food or if they are going to kick you in the teeth.”
After months of living on the streets, Glenn was referred to Father Joe’s Villages where he entered into emergency shelter and received help from the Village Health Center for his mental health and substance use challenges. Through individual therapy, group counseling and medication assisted treatment, Glenn received the stability and professional care he needed to get back on his feet. “Father Joe’s Villages helped me realize that I am not helpless, hopeless and worthless,” said Glenn. “The help I got there changed my whole life – I can function in society again.”
Glenn is now living in one of Father Joe’s Villages’ supportive housing complexes and credits the services he received at Father Joe’s Villages for providing him the tools he needed to regain control over his mental health. The Behavioral Health Services provided through Father Joe’s Villages’ Village Health Center helps lighten the load for those who already may have too much to carry. With the right support, neighbors experiencing homelessness can find their way home and move from despair into hope. Learn more at my.neighbor.org.
1:Glenn’s time serving in the Vietnam War left him with mental health struggles that made maintaining steady employment challenging, and eventually led to his homelessness.
2.Glenn credits the Behavioral Health Services he received at Father Joe’s Villages for providing him the tools he needed to regain control over his mental health.
