thewell

We refer to those regular participants in our work as Community Members. Here’s some information that will help you better understand their experience.

Most of the Community Members of the Well Community have been diagnosed with one or more mental illnesses (also called “brain disorders”). These illnesses affect their physical, psychological, emotional, social, occupational, and spiritual lives.

Mental illnesses are biological brain disorders that interfere with normal brain chemistry. They are very common: in one year, approximately 25 million Americans are affected. Locally this translates to approximately 20 to 21 percent of all persons in the North Texas area have some type of mental disorder over a one-year period, an estimate of more than 565,000 people*.

The symptoms of mental illnesses can be described as a “double-edged” sword – they both lead to added behaviors and diminished responses. Consider the following behaviors**:

Added Behaviors (Changes)	Diminished Responses (Losses)
Constant tension and nervousness	Ability to focus and concentrate
Irritability, criticalness, or abusiveness	Insight about what is happening
Unpredictable reaction	Pride in appearance and personal hygiene
Irrational statements and responses	Capacity for intimacy
Indifference, inflexible, obstinacy	Ability to cope with minor problems
Forgetfulness and losing things	Ability to exercise self-control
Rudeness and hostility	Optimism, faith, belief in the future
Fearfulness and hyper vigilance	Ability to appreciate people & accept help
Disinterest in sex or Hypersexuality	Pride in taking responsibility
Indecisiveness	Ability to express joy
Inappropriate and bizarre behaviors	Capacity to see another point of view
Wish to be withdrawn and isolated	Emotional resiliency

See the attached sheet, “About Mental Illness”, for some more information about specifics.

Living Conditions

The Oak Cliff area of Dallas (south of I-30 and west of I-45) has a comparatively high percentage of residents with mental illness. Local social workers consider this area apart of the demographically defined, “mental health corridor” of Dallas. While we are searching for the exact statistical numbers, our work indicates that the number of low-income residents who suffer from some form of brain disorder registers from several hundred at a minimum to over one thousand. For example, over 590 individuals in our immediate zip code, 75208, receive care under the public mental health system***.

The majority of this population lives in local boarding/group homes or public housing apartments. Others are scattered throughout the area and dwell in private residences and apartment buildings. Most are unemployed and live off their SSI or SSDI checks (approx. $500-$575 per month).

See the attached article, “Life on the Edge of Homelessness”, for a better understanding of the issues facing many of our Community Members.

* United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, 2002 Community Needs Assessment, page IV-10.

** Adapted from the NAMI Family to Family Education Program, 05/1998.

*** Statistic provided by Vivian Lawrence of the Mental Health Association of Greater Dallas and comes from state MHMR rolls.