I was gonna start this in Cycling, then I thought P+R, but more people will read it here.

[Page Turner]

What an Olympic medalist, homeless in Seattle, wants you to know

 

Rebecca Twigg has now been without a home for almost five years in Seattle, living first with friends and family, then in her car, then in homeless shelters and then, for a night, under garbage bags on the street downtown. She hasn’t had a bike for years, and no one recognizes her anymore, she says.

[Indy]

Got tired of reading, was there a point.

[Buzz Kill]

1 minute ago, Indy said:

Got tired of reading, was there a point.

That empathy and sympathy are gone from middle America.

[Page Turner]

2 minutes ago, Indy said:

Got tired of reading, was there a point.

...only if you think it could happen to you.

[Page Turner]

Just now, Razors Edge said:

That empathy and sympathy are gone from middle America.

...ya think ? And I'm the one who often describes himself as dead inside.  

[Indy]

1 minute ago, Page Turner said:

...only if you think it could happen to you.

No, because I'm like most people, I have no trouble working a job to make ends meet and not expecting it to bring me bliss.  That's what my spare time is for.

[Buzz Kill]

1 minute ago, Indy said:

No, because I'm like most people, I have no trouble working a job to make ends meet and not expecting it to bring me bliss.  That's what my spare time is for.

So you did read the FULL article!!! Yay!!!

[Indy]

Just now, Razors Edge said:

So you did read the FULL article!!! Yay!!!

I skimmed it, so didn't know if I actually missed something other than some one now old that never grew up and figure it out.  Guessing some how they tried to make it out to be someone else's fault for failings.  That's usually the way these things go anymore.

[Buzz Kill]

4 minutes ago, Indy said:

I skimmed it, so didn't know if I actually missed something other than some one now old that never grew up and figure it out.  Guessing some how they tried to make it out to be someone else's fault for failings.  That's usually the way these things go anymore.

So 1) you did miss something, and 2) my original comment was astute. You're good to move on to a happier topic.

[The_Karen_Cooper_Incident]

Maybe this is the dear lord's plan for her.  

Sometimes God just wants some to suffer.  

Shu Fang 

 

[Airehead]

Interesting article.  Actually kind of similar to the one over the weekend where the now empty-nester mother took off to Europe with no money.  She had spent many years on a single focus-- raising kids.  

Twigg had the same single focus to race.

And for both-- it was gone in a few moments.  They are both left with nothing that "fits".  Add a mental health issue or two and it is an even bigger recipe for disaster.

 

Additionally she said---“As a racer, you’re used to having a schedule kind of rotate around you,” Thompson said, “because you can’t overtrain, you don’t want to under-train, and you’re able to say ‘I’m not doing that today, I’m doing this today.’ And Rebecca, being so highly trained, and highly attuned, had the leeway of making those calls.”

 

Yep-- one focus, used to calling the shots.  Then poof, everything is gone.

[Page Turner]

32 minutes ago, Shu Fang said:

Sometimes God just wants some to suffer. 

...amen, Brother Fang.  Look no further than @AirwickWithCheese.  There, my friend, is suffering personified.

[The_Karen_Cooper_Incident]

3 minutes ago, Page Turner said:

...amen, Brother Fang.  Look no further than @AirwickWithCheese.  There, my friend, is suffering personified.

haha!

AWWC is my personal Jesus.

Shu Fang

[jsharr]

8 minutes ago, Shu Fang said:

haha!

AWWC is my personal Jesus.

Shu Fang

[Page Turner]

1 minute ago, jsharr said:

 

[jsharr]

3 minutes ago, Page Turner said:

 

 

[Randomguy]

She sounds like she needs a path to focus on and has lots of anxiety and a little bit of the stupids on top of it.  Too bad she hasn't glommed onto something else, but she just might be in her own little world too much.  She would probably be awesome at something if she could figure out what that would be.  

I imagine she could start training for some masters stuff and coach pretty easily.

[late]

Civilised countries have programs to help people adjust to changed circumstances.

 

Since clearly we can do better, because other societies do better, that suggests primitive myths deserve neither blame, when things go wrong, or credit when we make things better.

[maddmaxx]

33 minutes ago, Airehead said:

Interesting article.  Actually kind of similar to the one over the weekend where the now empty-nester mother took off to Europe with no money.  She had spent many years on a single focus-- raising kids.  

Twigg had the same single focus to race.

And for both-- it was gone in a few moments.  They are both left with nothing that "fits".  Add a mental health issue or two and it is an even bigger recipe for disaster.

 

Additionally she said---“As a racer, you’re used to having a schedule kind of rotate around you,” Thompson said, “because you can’t overtrain, you don’t want to under-train, and you’re able to say ‘I’m not doing that today, I’m doing this today.’ And Rebecca, being so highly trained, and highly attuned, had the leeway of making those calls.”

 

Yep-- one focus, used to calling the shots.  Then poof, everything is gone.

Many react to retirement the same way.  IMO it's not a bad idea to take on a part time job at something you enjoy to help transition.

[ChrisL]

I read the article on another news feed and it really surprised me.  Seems like a really smart person but I’m going to guess there are some mental health issues. 

I met her once at a local Crit in the early 80’s.  Actually she was kind of in her zone not really approachable.  There were a couple of other women, Cindy Olivari (sp?) and a few others that were very approachable.  Connie Carpenter wasn’t at that one... ?

[Page Turner]

...if there is a point here (at least on my part), it is that there was a time in America (long gone now, apparently) when you didn't end up homeless because you lack focus or have mental health issues.  The combination of rising rents and housing prices in paces like Seattle, combined with a much more competitive job market, where gaps on your resume or being age 50, can put someone out on the street before there's much warning that this is where you're headed.

I've never been homeless, exactly.  But I did choose to live in a bus for a while.  That was then, and if I tried the same things now, the chances are much better I'd have more trouble making the jump back into the middle class.  I could say I don't know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, but it would be a lie.  It's a bad thing, and as a society, we ought to be willing to confront it.

And it's not like this woman does not have family or connections to the Seattle area.  Mental health issues can easily result in so many bad experiences that family members want to distance themselves.  That's not unusual.  What's unusual in this case is that a woman who was arguably the brightest early star in American women's racing is so thoroughly and completely abandoned.

[Page Turner]

 

 

[Kirby]

It's sad to see anyone ill equipped to survive in the world.  She didn't want to discuss mental health, but it seems like there are signs of issues. I also feel sorry for her 18 year old daughter.  I hope she was able to find some sort of base for herself.  It sounds like she had the technical but not the life skills to keep a job.

[maddmaxx]

We are a throwaway society.  Did anyone really think that didn't apply to people as well.  Look around and listen for the people who will say she should have pulled it together and taken care of herself.

[Road Runner]

27 minutes ago, Kirby said:

It sounds like she had the technical but not the life skills to keep a job.

She needs a husband.

[Randomguy]

7 minutes ago, Road Runner said:

She needs a husband.

She may have a poor track record there already.  She does need one, though.

I volunteer Cheese.

[Dottleshead]

WTF?? What's wrong with you... 'Seattle' is right in the title. Seattle's fault.

[Page Turner]

7 minutes ago, Dottie said:

WTF?? What's wrong with you... Seattle is right in the title. Seattle's fault.

...she could be homeless in the Big Tomato, too.  It's a major industry here now.

[Randomguy]

20 minutes ago, Page Turner said:

...she could be homeless in the Big Tomato, too.  It's a major industry here now.

Or Portland, can't forget Portland!

[Dottleshead]

Basically anywhere not in the South. They have televangelists there.

[Dottleshead]

3 hours ago, jsharr said:

What a bunch of ugly bastards.

[Buzz Kill]

5 hours ago, ChrisL said:

 Seems like a really smart person but I’m going to guess there are some mental health issues. 

Yep - if you read the article and DIDN'T immediately see there are mental health issues involved, that should (but won't) concern you.  PT is spot on that " you shouldn't end up homeless because you ... have mental health issues." I honestly don't think I have ever come across a mentally "healthy" homeless person.  Whether it is due to drugs or their own chemical & neurotic issues or both or more, a humane society takes care of these types of folks. And leaving it to a family to sort out is just pretending that works and that mental illness doesn't often run in families.

[Dottleshead]

Mental illness is the real deal. It's also very costly. 

[Buzz Kill]

1 hour ago, Dottie said:

Mental illness is the real deal. It's also very costly. 

Probably, like almost all illnesses, preventative and regular treatment are FAR FAR FAR less expensive than waiting until it is a full blown crisis. But, that would require being pro-active (and empathetic) versus reactionary (and often judgmental). 

[Dottleshead]

2 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Probably, like almost all illnesses, preventative and regular treatment are FAR FAR FAR less expensive than waiting until it is a full blown crisis. But, that would require being pro-active (and empathetic) versus reactionary (and often judgmental). 

Yeah, well, you're too empathetic and cutting into profits, man.

[Square Wheels]

2 hours ago, Razors Edge said:

Probably, like almost all illnesses, preventative and regular treatment are FAR FAR FAR less expensive than waiting until it is a full blown crisis. But, that would require being pro-active (and empathetic) versus reactionary (and often judgmental). 

Sadly it's a condition people don't seek treatment for.

[MickinMD]

"She did not want to discuss mental health but feels it should be treated more seriously in Washington."

I think mental health is more the case here than empathy. She was invited to job interviews and turned them down, she slept outside under garbage because she thought others were more deserving of housing.

A childhood friend of mine got into hard psycho drugs when he was a teen and spent a few times in mental hospitals well into his 20's.  Thank God America hadn't cut the number of mental hospital beds in half then as it has since the 80's, when we began getting red light beggars, whole groups living in wooded areas of parks, etc.  He was straightened out with lots of institutional, family, and friend help and now, in his 60's, is married, owns a home, and will retire with a pension from a decent-paying job in the state Motor Vehicle Administration.

Rebecca Twigg talks about difficulty in changing careers after being used to a routine.  MOST of us have experienced that.  Look at the number of NFL stars who are no more than sidelines commentators now - they found a way to thrive outside of being at the top.  It's clear she was able to work hard to achieve what she did in cycling and it's such a shame she was not able to find a way to motivate herself to desire to achieve in other things.  I was an industrial chief chemist around age 30 who went into teaching after I got back into running on Saturdays and could taste the chemicals I'd been working with during the week - bench chemists then had the shortest lifespans of college grads.

I was not easy for me to take a big cut in pay and be one of the lesser-skilled in teaching when I started after being the top dog in my profession on the job.  But I found ways to like it and goals I wanted to achieve.  I did nothing special - that's how stable-minded people cope with situations and try to maintain decent incomes.

I don't know her well, but it sure seems like she could have used mental-related help to put her on track.