I am not a doctor; however, I am practicing to be an expert on me.
Are there more stigmas on mental health and treatment inside these fences, or outside? How about for those who’ve never been incarcerated?
“There’s a pill for everything” comes to mind. Not in a place with a large concentration of people who already are known (or presumed) to abuse prescription medication and/or other drugs. Incarcerated persons get very few “choices” (options) in their medicinal care. Here, we call it “Dummy Dope.” I’m trying to use a holistic approach with no meds; possibly because of my own stigmas.
What we do while incarcerated can follow us out of the gates. I’ve witnessed people afraid of seeking help because they don’t want their judge, prosecutor, victims, parole/probation officers to know. Continuance of care seems to stop at the fence – both incoming and outgoing. Could a prison counselor or the APA (Adult Parole Authority) assign a liaison, upon release, to those who are on a mental health caseload or to those who request it? Inside the fence we don’t have Mental Health apps. Prison has a lot of catching up to do.
“Point to what hurts” is a nod to the difference between the mental and the physical. I was fortunate to have grown up in a nurturing environment. Mom always put a Band-Aid on my cuts and scrapes. That was easy, just look for the blood! There are no marks or abrasions to injuries to your mental health. Where do you put the Band-Aid? We can easily manifest pain from our feelings getting hurt. We can produce a physiological response in our body from stress, anxiety, depression, joy, excitement, or grief. We can even produce and utilize a physical scar to heal internal injuries. Tattoos have been used as a way to ease mental injuries. I don’t recommended everyone get tattooed! It does work for some.
Unlike physical injury, a mental injury can take longer to heal. Is that because we don’t know how to treat it? If you’re cut, keep it clean, covered, and dry. If you get a scar you might have a cool story to tell. Mental health scars are present; only, most will never seen them or talk about them.
“Good health and exercise to prevent injury.” We’ve almost all heard that. It isn’t just about physical injury. I’m facing a very stressful situation in December of this year (2024). It could be really detrimental to me, if I don’t prepare myself for the stress. I’m putting my body through a lot of physical stress to create elasticity and the ability to handle the mental stress I already know will be present. Basically, I’m doing a marathon level training five days per week, including running, isometric exercise, stretching/yoga, breathing exercises and meditation.
This is all on my own, because I have a fear that going to mental health can hinder my going home. To me, I know it isn’t rational, but I still believe I would be either labelled or ignored.
Prison – and incarcerated persons – still need to catch up to today’s standards. We’re not disposable.
I have struggled with weight my whole life. Also, I’ve had an unhealthy relationship with food. Upon arrival, my first ‘bunkie’ said, “If you keep eating like that, they’re going to have to wheel you out of here!” I always told myself that I would get better when I get out. Six months ago, after eating a bag of chips (yes, a whole bag) before bed, I could feel my declined health. My fingertips and lips were pulsing — lightly, but noticeably — with every heartbeat and my snoring was bad enough to wake myself up! Sorry neighbors. I hadn’t been stricken with anxiety or panic attacks before prison. Now I was getting those physical cues to the stress on my body and mind on a weekly basis. My blood pressure was high. My sleep was terrible. My choices were poor. My body was screaming at me for a change.
Now, even after a short time, my cues are different. GOOD different. My mood, health, weight and ability to handle stress have improved dramatically. I’m a different person from what I was three months ago.
How to get better and point to what hurts:
This writing isn’t about my personal growth and goals. My thoughts and progress are only an example of my (very limited) experience. I do have a few ideas on how to improve. We have apprenticeships for a few professions here, Animal Training, Service Industry, and Maintenance — to name a few. Why not add personal training to our education? A lot of people injure themselves due to bad advice or improper form when exercising. Couldn’t our Games and Activity Therapist help prevent that? I’m not comfortable giving tips to anyone on how to begin to change their lifestyle; I only know what works for me. If we had some formal education it could improve overall health (physical and mental) for the entire incarcerated population. That would quickly filter to benefits for our Corrections Staff and those reintegrating to society.
I can only use my own personal experience and knowledge to determine my own mental health. I’m no expert. I’m not a doctor; however, I am practicing to be an expert on “me”. Only through growth, practice, and a whole lot of listening to our bodies can we get there.
Thank you for your time and reading.
–Justin
*Justin is a lettersfromchristopher.com contributing writer. He is incarcerated in Ohio. Please like and share this post!