This study aims at understanding the link among labor, mental distress, and psychosocial rehab from the point of view of people with either mental disorders or psychoactive substance addiction, regarding the meaning of laboring in their lives. The study took place in Psychosocial Attention Centers(CAPS), in the city of Goiânia, State of Goiás, Brazil. There were eight participants of both genders, who would consider labor something important in their daily lives. Two different types of data were used, as to mention, qualitative and exploratory methodology, by means of a focal group. The content analysis was used in evaluating the data provided. The results point at the importance of rescuing the history of labor among CAPS users. It is also of significance the profusion of meanings attributed to working by the users of mental health services. Labor proves to have an interface that is understood as a factor of protection and/or worsening of the condition of the subjects. The exclusion processes are reflected by the difficulty in obtaining social security/welfare benefits.
Work; Labor; Psychiatric reform; Social inclusion
