A bit about how I got here...
My name is Charlie. I am 22 years old, homeless, struggling with chronic pain that has caused me have to quit my job as a caregiver. For the past five years I have been involved in the very physically, emotionally, and mentally demanding work of supporting others in all aspects in individual lives. About two years ago now, I moved to Portland, OR in search of fat, queer, non-binary community that I could feel supported by. I moved here hoping to be self-sufficient, but things haven’t really gone so well for me. After stumbling through a few rough months of unemployment when I arrived, I started working in caregiving again. Thus started the cycle of self-neglect in my personal relationships and caring for everyone else around me. I’m notorious for caring for everyone except myself and it has perpetually gotten me into situations where once people are done using me—or I can’t take it anymore—they decide to drop me and kick me down further. I care too much; I give every last ounce of myself, until I’m bone dry, tapped out, and left without resources.
My partner and I have both been experiencing chronic pain, though his is due to lifelong injuries, illnesses, diseases, and disorders. Our typical day is not the average one. There is a lot of struggle to do daily tasks, to get groceries, to see the doctor, to get cat food and kitty litter, to clean the room, to do laundry. One of these tasks is a whole day’s itinerary. Before we begin our day we must medicate (in order to dress and function), apply pain relieving salves, heat (via bath, shower, heating pad, patches), get moving, get dressed, medicate again, make food, eat, and medicate before we can get out the door. This whole process can take anywhere from 2-6 hours. Using public transit to run errands, we can pretty much get only 2-3 done in any given day, absolute maximum. It takes too long to get around on the bus and for my partner to walk. These days, with all the added stress and physical demands on our bodies, my partner hasn’t been able to walk without his cane lately and I’ve been experiencing crippling body pain—both of which hinders us from being able to get even simple tasks done. Due to both of us caring for each other day-to-day and not really having much time, energy, or ability to work in any functional capacity by ourselves, we are now homeless (currently sheltered in our friend’s garage for the month of May) with our cat, income-less, and struggling to get back on our feet.
More than anything, we need a vehicle… we need something that will make us more efficient. Public transit is such a physical drain. If we had a vehicle, we could live out of it (on the road camping style), if need be, and wouldn’t be relying on other people’s space and accommodation. We could make the doctors appointments (with a better PCP and the many specialists that we need to see) that we need to make with doctors that will actually care for us, figure out what’s going on with us, and treat us—without the constraints of needing to be within a few miles from us and on public transit.
We are open to finding out-of-town work, seasonal work, various trades and barters, so long as they are adaptable or medical cannabis use is allowed, and queer-friendly.
We’ve been trying to rally our friends and family to help us, but most of them are falling on hard times themselves, or think we should just up and move back to the Midwest (where we feel unsafe and the climate makes us feel even more ill).Â
If you can share our Indie GoGo campaign and keep our story circulating, or maybe even donate yourself, if you’re able, that would mean the WORLD to us. We nearing rock bottom and calling out for help.
(Click on the link below to access our Indie GoGo campaign.)
