Michael Wood has seen his share of dark days.

What developed as a bad habit in his teenage years eventually landed him a 13-month stint in prison and later left him living on the floor of a Chapel Hill homeless shelter.

Last year, Wood was one of about 3.5 million Americans who experienced homelessness.

He was also part of the estimated 25 percent of that population — or about 875,000 individuals — who struggled with a chronic mental illness.

And compared to the large number of homeless individuals with mental illnesses, the mental healthcare services available are disproportionately low.

The cause

Where the cycle of high mental illness in the homeless population begins is difficult for many to discern.

Chris Moran, executive director of the Inter-Faith Council for Social Service, said for many chronically homeless people, healthcare takes a last priority.

“When you don’t have any money, the last thing you’re going to take care of is yourself,” he said.

Individuals who suffer from chronic mental illnesses often find it difficult to secure basic necessities like housing and food, said Dr. John Gilmore, a professor of psychiatry at the University and director of the Center for Excellence in Community Mental Health. And when they don’t have money, they can end up on the streets.

“Having a mental illness like schizophrenia is very hard,” Gilmore said. “To add the stress of homelessness makes it even harder to treat.”

Another possible cause of the problem is the lack of community programs for individuals experiencing homelessness.

“One of the challenges underway is there are less and less state and federal dollars for homeless individuals,” Moran said.

Jamie Rohe, coordinator of the Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness, also attributes the rise in mental illness to the decentralization of services that was never paired with increased community-based programs.

“They cut out services and facilities and they say, ‘We’re going to fund something more decentralized,’ but they don’t fund it,” she said. “It’s been a tragedy.”

Difficult options

Within the county, those suffering from homelessness often encounter restrictions when trying to access healthcare because of their lack of both an address and financial resources.

“All I know is if you’re poor, you have to go through so many hoops to get what you need,” Moran said.

In addition, he said homeless people often aren’t eligible for programs like Medicaid or Social Security Disability.

And even if individuals have received mental healthcare in the past, Moran said they are often in need of constant services that they can’t secure when they’re living on the streets, especially if providers don’t know where to find them.

“There’s not the case management or the services they need to reassimilate into society,” he said.

One option available to individuals with a mental illness is the Charity Care Program at UNC.

The program provides a variety of healthcare services — including mental healthcare — to low-income individuals for a co-pay of $25 per clinic visit.

The IFC also provides weekly counseling services for individuals staying in its shelters, as well as access to a variety of rehabilitation programs and pharmaceutical resources.

Wood, who suffered from alcohol and drug addictions for years, overcame his addiction after moving into the IFC shelter.

He has been sober for a year, he said, and now teaches a class for homeless individuals about the housing, financial and healthcare resources available to them.

“Chapel Hill might not have as many psychological resources, but people believe in second chances here,” he said. “I don’t know if I could have done this anywhere else.”

A possible solution

For Gilmore and others who work with the homeless, the first step in solving the mental illness problem is securing housing.

“Getting stable housing is very important for people’s recovery,” he said.

Moran said the lack of federal and state funding has decreased IFC’s ability to provide services like housing to the mentally ill.

“There are huge needs and local communities need to better identify those needs and find suitable alternatives,” Moran said. “Nothing is going to change until they look at this need.”

Contact the City Editor at city@dailytarheel.com.