Comments on: A Homeless Man… http://bertelsen.ca/journal/a-homeless-man Sat, 28 Aug 2010 13:35:14 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: monkeyp http://bertelsen.ca/journal/a-homeless-man#comment-164 monkeyp Fri, 17 Aug 2007 17:26:12 +0000 http://civilized.ca/?p=204#comment-164 <p>HI all…</p> <p>I’m an addictions counsleor and I work with homeless individuals. This is a real dilemma for all of us. Many homeless persons do have problems with drugs and alcohol. the problem is that when they are detoxing – especially from alcohol – they <span class="caps">NEED</span> – i mean physically need to maintain a certain level of alcohol in their systm or they go into delerium tremens – a lifethreatening side effect when detoxing from alcohol. Many of us are reluctant to give alcohol or money for alcohol to persons who we perceive may be alcoholic. If an alcoholic – a person whose body is chemically dependent on alcohol – doesn’t maintain a certain level (the quantity of which is determined on an individual basis) they can have a grand mal siezure. Unfortunately where I’m from, the detox facility doesn’t always accept persons in for treatment if they’ve been detoxed before. Alcohol detoxification requires medical monitoring and at a detox facilitly they will monitor the persons symptoms and provide them with an alternate medication to avoid DT’s (delerium tremens – a symptom of which is the grand mal siezures which cause brain damage). Once having been detoxed there are other problems to deal with though, the underlying problems of homelessness, need for a permanent address, clothing and bathing opportunities. It’s a complex problem. A good thing to do if you do encounter someone with this problem is to offer to help get them into a detox program. After that they’ll need actual treatment, becasue detox is only that and no treatment for underlying problems will be provided in detox.</p> <p>for D. Pantlin – is your father Phil?</p> HI all…

I’m an addictions counsleor and I work with homeless individuals. This is a real dilemma for all of us. Many homeless persons do have problems with drugs and alcohol. the problem is that when they are detoxing – especially from alcohol – they NEED – i mean physically need to maintain a certain level of alcohol in their systm or they go into delerium tremens – a lifethreatening side effect when detoxing from alcohol. Many of us are reluctant to give alcohol or money for alcohol to persons who we perceive may be alcoholic. If an alcoholic – a person whose body is chemically dependent on alcohol – doesn’t maintain a certain level (the quantity of which is determined on an individual basis) they can have a grand mal siezure. Unfortunately where I’m from, the detox facility doesn’t always accept persons in for treatment if they’ve been detoxed before. Alcohol detoxification requires medical monitoring and at a detox facilitly they will monitor the persons symptoms and provide them with an alternate medication to avoid DT’s (delerium tremens – a symptom of which is the grand mal siezures which cause brain damage). Once having been detoxed there are other problems to deal with though, the underlying problems of homelessness, need for a permanent address, clothing and bathing opportunities. It’s a complex problem. A good thing to do if you do encounter someone with this problem is to offer to help get them into a detox program. After that they’ll need actual treatment, becasue detox is only that and no treatment for underlying problems will be provided in detox.

for D. Pantlin – is your father Phil?

]]> By: Pearl Johnson http://bertelsen.ca/journal/a-homeless-man#comment-148 Pearl Johnson Fri, 02 Mar 2007 00:45:57 +0000 http://civilized.ca/?p=204#comment-148 <p>I would give cash, usually do, all that I have in my pocket. I try not to decide who is the ‘deserving’ poor and give freely to all. Sometimes I know the money will be used for a beer and if that is what the person wants, he gets to make his choices, few as they are.</p> I would give cash, usually do, all that I have in my pocket. I try not to decide who is the ‘deserving’ poor and give freely to all. Sometimes I know the money will be used for a beer and if that is what the person wants, he gets to make his choices, few as they are.

]]> By: Denise Pantlin Wright http://bertelsen.ca/journal/a-homeless-man#comment-14225 Denise Pantlin Wright Sun, 04 Feb 2007 10:00:00 +0000 http://civilized.ca/?p=204#comment-14225 I would have given him the money - I almost always do. I can't sit comfortably in my car, in my comfortable life, and bring myself to say no to people that are clearly worse off than I am (so, I almost never give money to street kids with tattoos more expensive than mine).It doesn't matter to me what the money would be used for. If he uses it to obtain the more socially valid food and shelter, then great. If he uses it to buy drugs or alcohol or whatever else he uses as his form of escape, I'm fine with that, too. Obviously we'd all like to hope that everyone in his situation would do the best he could to improve his life, but not knowing what it's like to live like he does, I'd try not to pass judgement. I try to live life with hope. So I'd give him the money with the hope that it buys him shelter, but not judge his possible intention to buy some fleeting comfort where he thinks he needs it. I would have given him the money – I almost always do. I can't sit comfortably in my car, in my comfortable life, and bring myself to say no to people that are clearly worse off than I am (so, I almost never give money to street kids with tattoos more expensive than mine).It doesn't matter to me what the money would be used for. If he uses it to obtain the more socially valid food and shelter, then great. If he uses it to buy drugs or alcohol or whatever else he uses as his form of escape, I'm fine with that, too. Obviously we'd all like to hope that everyone in his situation would do the best he could to improve his life, but not knowing what it's like to live like he does, I'd try not to pass judgement. I try to live life with hope. So I'd give him the money with the hope that it buys him shelter, but not judge his possible intention to buy some fleeting comfort where he thinks he needs it.

]]> By: Denise Wright http://bertelsen.ca/journal/a-homeless-man#comment-20031 Denise Wright Sun, 04 Feb 2007 10:00:00 +0000 http://civilized.ca/?p=204#comment-20031 I would have given him the money - I almost always do. I can't sit comfortably in my car, in my comfortable life, and bring myself to say no to people that are clearly worse off than I am (so, I almost never give money to street kids with tattoos more expensive than mine).It doesn't matter to me what the money would be used for. If he uses it to obtain the more socially valid food and shelter, then great. If he uses it to buy drugs or alcohol or whatever else he uses as his form of escape, I'm fine with that, too. Obviously we'd all like to hope that everyone in his situation would do the best he could to improve his life, but not knowing what it's like to live like he does, I'd try not to pass judgement. I try to live life with hope. So I'd give him the money with the hope that it buys him shelter, but not judge his possible intention to buy some fleeting comfort where he thinks he needs it. I would have given him the money – I almost always do. I can't sit comfortably in my car, in my comfortable life, and bring myself to say no to people that are clearly worse off than I am (so, I almost never give money to street kids with tattoos more expensive than mine).It doesn't matter to me what the money would be used for. If he uses it to obtain the more socially valid food and shelter, then great. If he uses it to buy drugs or alcohol or whatever else he uses as his form of escape, I'm fine with that, too. Obviously we'd all like to hope that everyone in his situation would do the best he could to improve his life, but not knowing what it's like to live like he does, I'd try not to pass judgement. I try to live life with hope. So I'd give him the money with the hope that it buys him shelter, but not judge his possible intention to buy some fleeting comfort where he thinks he needs it.

]]> By: Sharon Elliott http://bertelsen.ca/journal/a-homeless-man#comment-140 Sharon Elliott Wed, 31 Jan 2007 19:57:59 +0000 http://civilized.ca/?p=204#comment-140 <p>Brandon,<br /> Who would have known after all these years, my little brother would stumble onto my very passion without even knowing it. You should come down to the shelter sometime, spend some time… see the people everyone tries so hard not to see… It’s a life changing experience, and everyday offers its own rewards. <br /> Love ya Little B!!</p> Brandon,
Who would have known after all these years, my little brother would stumble onto my very passion without even knowing it. You should come down to the shelter sometime, spend some time… see the people everyone tries so hard not to see… It’s a life changing experience, and everyday offers its own rewards.
Love ya Little B!!

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