Help me, and I'll help myself (and others). A narrative inquiry into older women's experiences of health and homelessness.

Authors

Lara Nixon, Elaine Boyling, Emma Mierau, Rebecca Hughes, Jeuel Ugburo-Shanomi, Martina Kelly

Published in

Frontiers in global women's health. Volume 7. Pages 1740814. Epub Oct 09, 2026.

Abstract

While women's homelessness is increasingly recognized as a gendered issue, experiences of aging while homeless remain underexplored. This study examined how older women navigate intersections of aging, health, and homelessness, focusing on how these experiences are shaped by structural and social factors.
Women's lived experiences were explored and interpreted using a narrative approach. Eleven women (aged 57-65 years) took part in two in-depth interviews each, followed by participation in three sequential focus groups. Data were analyzed iteratively informed by Riessman's thematic and structural narrative analysis. Focus groups served as collaborative spaces to provide feedback on initial interpretations and deepen understanding of experiences across social and structural contexts. Co-constructed storylines and composite narratives are presented of participants' re-structured experiences.
Two main storylines were identified and supported the development of an overarching counter narrative. The first, 'Hurry up and Wait', describes the tension women felt within bureaucratic systems that appeared to offer assistance but were experienced as burdensome and disempowering. Shelters and temporary housing were depicted as unsafe and detrimental to health, including hampering their ability to maintain family relationships. The second storyline, 'Making lemonade', reflects women's agency in managing their health and supporting each other. Despite systemic marginalization, women kept meaningful connections with friends, family, and community, which were a vital form of social capital.
In dominant discourses on homelessness, women's experiences are often hidden and seen through stigmatizing views. This study shows how older women competently navigate complex systems and resist this characterization, creating networks and using caregiving roles to provide mutual support. We propose this labor as a previously unrecognized form of social capital through which women who are homeless affirm their worth and support one another.

PMID:
42920746
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 24 Oct 2026.

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