Psyber wrote:Early in my career I treated a formerly successful engineer who developed a late onset Paranoid Schizophrenia in his late 30s.
A few years later he was living in a boarding house on his pension and wearing second hand clothes.
It was a sobering experience for me, overloaded, to realise we are all at risk of developing something, even late in life, that will take our destiny out of our hands that is not caused by our own behaviour, but rather the lottery of genetic and prenatal influences as that condition is.
Agreed. a regular attendee at the Matthew Talbot Hostel in Sydney (which looks after the homeless and those struggling in our community - part of St. Vincent de Paul) is a former High Court Judge. Unfortunately, when his wife left him, he became an alcoholic and has really struggled with his life. Unfortunately it can happen to any of us and just takes a bad event to trigger it off.
For those of you who would like to actually assist the homeless, feel free to apply to join us in Fred's Van (also part of St. Vincent de Paul). We work in teams and go out to feed the homeless and give them a shoulder to lean on. There are a number of vans now operating in Adelaide - city centre, western suburbs, northern suburbs, southern suburbs.
Cheers