Supported living claims to provide a safe and stable environment for its residents, according to the website of the neighborhood teams. “The goal of supported living is to create calm and stability.” As an intern at MDHG, I finally had the chance to see one of these facilities myself, with an appointment to meet Laura.

Laura, age 60, was born in West Germany but moved to Amsterdam shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Recently, after a brief stay in Germany, she’s returned to a supported living facility. There, she found a stack of opened letters on her coffee table. In one of these, the immigration service informed her of plans to deport her to Germany, despite residing in the Netherlands for decades. A caregiver had opened her mail but hadn’t reached out to her in time, so she missed the deadline to appeal. Panicked, she reached out to us for legal help.

Since I’d arranged an online meeting with an immigration lawyer, I went to her facility with my laptop, eager to see inside. The neighborhood team website states, “A calm home is beneficial for everyone, but for people with mental health challenges, a safe, stable environment is essential.”

Upon arrival, two guards greeted me, before guiding me through three locked doors. Together with a guard, I took the elevator to the seventh-floor office. A staff member asked if I was family, recalling a conversation I’d had earlier where I’d asked whether it was normal for staff to open residents’ mail. He had declined to answer. Now, when I replied I was from MDHG, his expression turned noticeably cooler and a bit suspicious.

Ten minutes later, Laura arrived at the office door to meet me, and together we made our way to her room. Her room felt suffocating, as the heat poured in through the bare windows. The walls were empty, with the floor an old blend of faded colors that resembled a dated high school. Her bed rested on a metal frame that looked like it had been there since the 90s.

We spoke to the lawyer briefly, then a sudden knock on the door interrupted us. A fellow resident wanted to buy a fix. Frustrated, Laura shouted, “No!” but the knocking only became more insistent. Angry, she rushed to the door and sent him away.

“This happens day and night,” she sighed. “I can’t sleep.” Her frustration and sense of powerlessness were clear. She feels forgotten and isolated here.

We ended my visit with a quick smoke. As I took the stairs back to the office, I wanted to say goodbye to the staff, but the office was already closed.

In the elevator, the echo of someone yelling filled the air, a loud voice from somewhere in the building. The unsettling sound stayed with me as the elevator numbers slowly ticked down. I hoped I’d reach the ground floor without any stops.

Outside, I had to squeeze through a narrow, bar-like turnstile. As I exited, a man lay on the ground, shouting angrily at everyone and no one in particular. The neighborhood teams’ website promises that “if you qualify for supported living, our staff will help you find meaningful activities.”

*Laura is an altered name.

By: Ties Liedekerken