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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 2009)
8 Education * Dialogue * In d ep en d en ce^ ^ Left: D uring a panic attack, Melissa is comforted by a worker at the food bank. People with Asperger's crave routine, so homelessness is especially devastating to her. “I ’m like a 15year- old inside, developmentally and emotionally speaking. 1 feel like a teen with no social skills stuck in an adult body. ” Left; Sean Walsh, 25, suffers from seizures caused by PT SD , the result o f an abusive childhood. Prescribed at least 1 5 different drugs since he was 10, Sean hasneverbeen able to get his symptoms under control. In Spokane he was a medical assistant, but his condition forced him out o f the field. H e estimates that he has $110,000 in unpaid medical bills. Below: Melissa writes her feelings to help communicate. “I feel like I disappeared o ff the face o f the Earth. I feel like I disappeared when my job did. ” - Melissa Walsh
