Homeless Youth In Canada

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Adolescence is a crucial time for youth in which they require a supportive and nurturing environment surrounding them. In order to face the difficult struggles and endure the developmental tasks of creating their self-identity to become autonomous adults, youth require a strong support system (Hughes, Clark, Wood, Cakmak, Cox, MacInnis, & Broom 2010). As can be seen, however, there is an increase in youth who have to deal with the utmost hardship in life that is homelessness. In Canada, there are diverse demographics of individuals who are affected by homelessness and face many similar challenges such as poor living conditions and isolation. These hardships are exacerbated when the homeless youth also suffer from mental health issues (Hughes, …show more content…

This is related to the lack of social support networks for homeless youth, which is a social determinant of health that will be later discussed. The reason that this key issue is related to community health is because homelessness creates many obstacles and barriers for the youth (Hughes, et al., 2010). This prevents the new generation from being autonomous and contributing members of society. When living on the street, there is exposure to abuse, poverty, unaffordable housing, and inadequate accessibility for healthcare (Hughes, et al., 2010). If the population continues to be homeless and have mental health problems, then it will further affect the number of people who are active members in society. This, in turn, puts this population at more risk and greater need for health services and social support, as compared to youth who live in more stable environments. Youth homelessness creates an excess of stress, which can potentially further amplify previous mental health illness and encourage anxiety and …show more content…

Reports demonstrate that youth with no homes were more likely than their housed peers to report feeling depressed and exhibit higher rates of self-injurious behaviors such as suicide attempts. This is because homeless youth see the stable environments that their housed peers live in, which causes them more stress and depression (Desjarlais-de Klerk, (2016). Not having a stable home, a shelter to live in, and any form of support when coupled with seeing others who do can be especially detrimental feelings and self-worth (Perlman, Willard, Janette, Herbers, Cutuli, Karin & Garg. 2014). There are several reasons as to why youth become homeless in the first place, such as being victims of violence, abuse, unemployment, and discrimination (Perlman et al., 2014). All these circumstances can affect this population emotionally, physically, and mentally thus lowering down their self-confidence and hope, making it harder to cope with their depression and anxiety (Perlman et al., 2014). Furthermore, at young ages, self-regulation and good cognitive functioning are imperative for a healthy development in youth (Perlman et al., 2014). As such, most of these skills are learned through parenting skills in stable environments; when these skills are taken away, it creates more difficulty for the homeless youth who suffer from mental health issues to

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