Reflections of a homeless population's lived experience with substance abuse.

The aim of this study was to describe a homeless population's lived experience with substance abuse. A retrospective descriptive design was used to collect data from a sample of 75 homeless adults participating in a community-based homeless recovery residential program. Each participant was interviewed concerning gender, age, marital status, race, religion, education, employment, substance abuse, family history, psychiatric history, and legal history. Characteristics that emerged from the data were grouped into categories using content analysis. Seventy-three of the 75 homeless participants reported a history of substance abuse and provided in-depth descriptions of issues concerning their substance abuse.