Getting out of homelessness is hard enough, and staying out of it can be just as difficult, but it can be done.
That鈥檚 according to Linda Autore, the CEO and president of Laurel House, which offers housing assistance for people suffering from housing insecurity and dealing with mental illness.
鈥淪ometimes people come to us who are in real distress, and so we remediate from that and help them build the skills they need to cope and just maintain daily living,鈥� Autore said.
Finding mental health care and housing is possible, provided someone knows where to look for help, which Autore says even other nonprofits struggle to navigate. She was one of several speakers at a recent mental health panel hosted by the Housing Collective in Westport, which aimed to connect nonprofits with other resources from medical providers.
How housing insecurity affects mental health
The need continues to increase for wrap-around services addressing the links between housing insecurity and mental illness, according to local nonprofit leaders.
showed a greater share of the homeless population now suffers from severe mental illness, compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic.
published in the journal BJPsych Bulletin, people with mental illness are not more likely to experience homelessness compared to the general population, but homelessness can exacerbate mental health issues. Suicides are more likely within the homeless population and .
Building awareness of housing and health services available in Fairfield County, where have increased by nearly one-third since 2020 and an average of 22%, is increasingly important.
鈥淲e have the same problem that anybody in the state of 海角换妻 has right now, that the cost of living and just the lack of an inventory, an appropriate inventory, of apartments,鈥� Autore said.
Groups like Autore's Laurel House also help people experiencing homelessness or facing housing insecurity by connecting them to apartments accepting Section 8 vouchers, which she says are in short supply.
Building community
Several nonprofits in Fairfield County said they鈥檝e faced difficulty connecting clients with referrals to meet their needs. That's something Jessica Kubicki, the chief innovation officer at the Housing Collective, a housing advocacy group based in Bridgeport, is trying to address.
鈥淭hat's why we focused on networking before the event and after the event,鈥� Kubicki said. 鈥淥ver the last couple years [we heard of] clients struggling when they're already in housing with their mental health, and providers feeling like they didn't know which [housing] resources to tap into."
Find resources in Fairfield County:
- - A Bridgeport-based collective advocating for affordable housing solutions.
- - Nonprofit health care facility providing affordable medical care for the uninsured, which also accepts patients with insurance.
- - Bridgeport-based organization providing a variety of services for people suffering from mental illness, including housing support.
- - Stamford-based organization providing a variety of services for people suffering from mental illness, including housing support.
- - Stamford-based mental health service provider run through the state鈥檚 Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.
