Housing and mental health.

[calmseeker]

Hi All,

I have been thinking lately about the link between good mental health and housing. Yet again, I have a pending move, which I know is a trigger for my anxiety. I tend to get quite ill after a move, there have been too many moves for me recently. mostly because am in the private housing market and my owners always either move back into their property or sell the property. I yearn for a stable, long term home (I could never afford to buy). I am such a 'homely' person. I feel that if I could remain somewhere for a reasonable amount of time I could really relax and focus on my mental health, I feel like I never can, I am always moving or catching up financially from a move or trying to settle in somewhere new. The cost is phenomenal to rent now, it really blows my mind. What a person needs to come up with for a rental property is quite a lot, not just the rent itself but the moving costs, cleaning of previous property, etc.

I am aware of NRAS but those properties rarely come up. Housing Dep have told me 10-15 plus year wait. Private market ridiculously expensive.

I am very thankful to even have a roof over my head, don't get me wrong (not that I can afford that roof though). I realise there are lots of people who don't even have a home so I am really not ungrateful, just sick of the stress that comes with searching for affordable, decent housing where I can hopefully lay my hat for a few years. A home should be a place where a person can feel safe and relaxed and heal and survive - not feel like a hotel. My ranting was not meant to actually be a big whinge about my situation (sorry if its turned out that way!) more so just a comment on the link between good mental health and stable housing really.

[Katyonthehamsterwheel]

Hey there

There's absolutely a link between the two. Yesterday in my "3 things I"m grateful for" post, I put my house as one. The reason is that even though I don't own it, I'm in public housing, it is a stable base for me. There's definitely nothing fancy about it. But it's "mine". So I feel for you. There's a saying I came across that says "home is a refuge from storms, all kinds of storms". I wish everyone had the opportunity to have a safe space to call their own.

Hugs, Katy

[Summer Rose]

Hi Calmseeker

I can feel your pain and I understand it.

I support a number of mental health charities and one of them is a mental health and disability support service called WellWays. This organisation operates across the nation, except for WA and NT. One of the things they do really well is to work with people to identify their housing needs and then assist in helping people to find and maintain housing. If you happen to live in a service area you may want to give them a call on 1300 111 400.

Kind thoughts to you

[calmseeker]

Exactly Katy, nothing fancy required, just stable will do. Love the quote.

Hugs right back at cha..

CS

[calmseeker]

Hi Summer Rose, thanks for the reply. I am going to have a peek at WellWays, thanks for the heads up.

The housing situation is getting worse in certain parts of the country and I fear maybe even worse in the future. Its so important for well being to have the baseline of decent housing. Shelter, water, food, all people should have these things. Good things can happen for people when those basics are met.

Thanks again

CS

[Summer Rose]

Hi Calmseeker

You are spot on. And your sentiments and struggles are exactly the reason why I support Wellways.

If you do contact them, I'd love to know how you get on (but no pressure). I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

Kind thoughts to you

[Hanna3]

Hi calmseeker,

I can absolutely relate to how you feel. The last time I was in private rental I was given a notice to vacate just before Christmas - because the landlord was a teacher and it suited her to move back in during the Christmas school holidays (she lived in the same town so no big deal for her to move). The real estate agents were closing for the break so no rentals were available to view.

Getting a removalist at almost Christmas is virtually impossible. I didn't have the money to move so the only way to afford putting my belongings into temporary storage was to get rid of most of my furniture. It was dreadful.

I had a lengthy period of being homeless after that, before kind people running a caravan park where I managed to get a cabin temporarily helped me by organising an old caravan for me to rent - at $250/week mind you, but that was not their fault - they were the caravan park managers but the park owner set the rent.

What I did learn from my time there was how little you need to be happy. I had a lovely community around me in the caravan park - people there were lovely, a few were a bit odd but it was easy to avoid them - and the scenery was beautiful. At night I could lie in bed and listen to the sea. My little dog Sam was completely happy there. If I could have afforded a little place there - just a caravan - I never would have left, but I didn't have the money to buy one and eventually I had to leave.

I got into public housing as a priority but had a terrible time with the neighbours (it was a two storey block of very tiny units). Most were alcoholics, several were men just out of prison, and the two elderly women near me had dementia and were viciously nasty. It was frightening.

I've moved inland to a house, but regret it now - it's dreadfully hot in summer and will be freezing in winter. I don't have the feel of a real community here - the neighbours greeted me when I moved in and I haven't seen or spoken to them now for five months. Nobody here talks to each other.

Personally I'd be happy back in a well run caravan park and I'm seriously thinking of finding one to rent back by the coast somewhere.

So I guess I learnt that what I needed was somewhere I felt safe, had stability (so important!) a "community" around me, had some nice things and scenery around me in the town - nice dog friendly cafes, nice walks, a nice cinema, good Op Shops. I have no family, so a sense of community is important for me.

[quirkywords]

Calmseeker,

It is so important the link between safe affordable and mental health.

I suppose I never realised how true that was for me until now when I lost my home and shop in the fires. I have places to stay with cousins and I am lucky but temporary but it is not home. I am lucky to have a roof over my head but I don't have the sense of community that Hana spoke of.

Calmseeker I feel for you having to move and I know how hard that is.

I was lucky yo have my home for so long and maybe took it for granted.

Thanks for this thread

[Hanna3]

Hi quirky,

I don't know if you watched Q&A on the ABC on Monday night about the bushfires. One woman who had lost her home in previous fires years ago talked about how where she had to live for a long time before her house could be rebuilt never felt like home, nothing was familiar, not even the cup she used etc. And so much of her community had also lost their homes. She said the first time she began to felt better was when the rebuilding of her house finally happened - just the first scaffolding, the first nails. She said that made all the difference.

She sounded very much like you must be feeling now.

[calmseeker]

Hi there Quirky,

Let me start off by saying how very sorry I am you find yourself in this situation, my heart goes out to you at this time. I have read some of the support you give to others on these forums and you sound like a lovely and intelligent person and I have no doubt you possess the resilience needed to get through this.

I was actually hesitant to post this particular thread at first due to the bush fire situation. I didn't want to come across as ungrateful. My situation is basically that I struggle to pay the ridiculous private rent prices and I know moving is a definite trigger for my anxiety, I get so ill after a move. In saying that though, I have a good rental record and I know I wont be homeless (maybe extremely broke and ill with debilitating anxiety but nevertheless, not homeless).

Best wishes to you with this difficult stage Quirky and thank you for your thoughts.

CS