The Apollo Homelessness Collaborative is dedicated to aiding the work of other nonprofits in Baltimore, and works hard to help the homeless indirectly through these organizations, including Church on the Avenue, Franciscan Center, People Helping People,and Healthcare for the Homeless. To stress the importance of these groups, and what they provide for the homeless, it is sometimes important to focus on the individual. This is why this post will focus on the person whom Apollo’s name was based on, brother of founder Michael McShea, James (Jim) McShea.
There are many stereotypes associated with the homeless. Some think that they threw their life away on purpose, and so ignore them entirely. Others think they simply weren’t competent enough to survive comfortably. However, over everything, Mike’s admiration for his brother shines through. Jim is smart, creative, artistic, and gifted. He is a talented artist, worked as a graphic designer for organizations such as RollCal and—, and is loved and respected by many. I believe it is important to start with these attributes, before immediately focusing on what went wrong.
Jim studied graphic design at Syracuse University, and immediately moved to California. He eventually moved back to the east coast, staying with friends in Philadelphia. During this period of Jim’s life, he had trouble sleeping, and began hearing voices, which his friends reported to the family. Mike, who was working in New Jersey at the time, decided to drive up to Philadelphia and lure Jim to a mental facility.
“The most insane 48 hours of my life were in Philadelphia…I would coax him to the car, then we’d go 20 feet and pull over, towards the hospital…and then finally he split,” Mike said.
The only option left was involuntary treatment, through an emergency evaluation, which meant getting legal forces involved. The problem was, the hospital could only legally hold him there for 72 hours. And so, the cycle had begun—since this first emergency evaluation, Jim has been taken into treatment a total of eight times. He has yet to find a permanent residence, and remains homeless to this day in the Hampden-Remington area.
How did this happen? Well, Jim suffers from schizophrenia, which can cause strong senses of antagonism—this, paired with his anosognosia (see blog post “Anosognosia and Homelessness”) made him deny his mental illness, and so refuse treatment, which made him an inherent threat to his own well-being. Self-destructive behavior, ranging from dissociative rambling to verbal threats, has made him unable to keep a job and retain a permanent residence.
When someone denies their own mental illness, the only option for their health and well-being is involuntary treatment. But legislation in many states such as Maryland is simply lacking.
“Forcing someone to take medication is a very serious thing…you wouldn’t want the bar for that to be low, but the threshold for being a danger to himself is way too high. If you are unaware of reality, that in itself is dangerous,” Mike argued.
By all accounts, Jim’s mental health is an obstacle to his own well-being. His illness makes him antagonistic towards his family, pushing away those who simply want to help. On many occasions, Jim was given shelter and medication, returning briefly to a stable lifestyle with relative comfort. On all occasions, he went off medications due to his delusions, and ended up on the streets.
The missing element is involuntary treatment, which would get Jim on the right track and help him care for himself. In its place, he relies on nonprofit organizations, as well as individuals in the community, to get by. Mike stressed his gratitude for nonprofits in Baltimore, many of which have helped Jim on numerous occasions.
From an outside perspective, homelessness seems simple: either the family abandoned them, or they made poor life decisions which could have been avoided. But it’s not that simple.
“From a family perspective, what do you do? People do not understand. They think, ‘Your brother is homeless in Baltimore? Why don’t you do something? What’s wrong with you?’”
Apollo affirms itself, along with other nonprofits in Baltimore, as the only option to prevent this cycle, until the local government lowers the bar for involuntary treatment. At the moment this post has been published, Jim is on the streets of Baltimore, struggling to get by, in complete denial of the future that lies in medication. There are many others like him. But despite the failures of current legislation, thanks to these nonprofits, people like Jim get the help they need to survive.
To read more about the current policy on involuntary treatment in Baltimore, navigate to the post titled “Maryland Policy on Involuntary Treatment.”
Disclaimer: This blog post was written by the son of Michael McShea, Timothy McShea.