inmate perspective #7

Jun 14, 2023

Paroling, brought to tears

To be clear up front, I was the one brought to tears.

We won’t even get to why he’s here in PT for another 20 minutes.

I see he’s reading a manual on how to get a Class A license, to drive a big rig. I’m initially curious if it’s a program at the prison, because I haven’t heard of it before.

It’s not, he’s doing it on his own, because, he quietly notes….he’s paroling soon.

“I’m a lifer and I’d kind of, you know, given up hope.” He’s been in prison since he was in his early 20’s and now he’s in his 50’s. He goes on to explain that 5 years ago he’d just been getting high in order to numb everything.

Then something made him take a class that inspired him to get clean. He started doing a lot of programming and taking classes and going to church. He got a job, helping others that need assistance moving around the prison.

Recently he sat for his parole hearing and “they heard how I was programming and how I had changed and found me suitable for release.”

I have no idea what this man did to be sentenced to life in prison. And because of that I can see a man who likely caused some suffering, has been subject to suffering and eventually came to find some redemption.

I told him he was going to make me cry. The tears welled up, just enough to not fall.

“Congratulations. Sounds like you’re seeing with clarity now.” So many of my patients speak about the blinders of addiction and how it’s the thing that got them incarcerated and the real shackles that keeps them numb to change.

He’s concerned about where he’s paroling. Is it safe? Without gang banging? Is it a good community? “Someone else called it ‘Staleville.’ Stale sounds great,” he says.

And then he told me what he wanted to eat when he got out: a big ‘ole steak slab and shrimp. And probably not a lot of vegetables, owning up to wanting to indulge on meat, waffles, etc for at least a year.

And that’s where we turned to PT coaching and I encouraged him to make sure he eats some vegetables, carve out the soda and other sugars to help his joint pains. Plus a side note that I completely understand him wanting to enjoy and indulge too.

And on the road we went, to finally address his reason for coming to PT.

*just to note, I’ll be leaving out the name of the institution that I work at. It’s a state prison for reference. Images are not from the prison as no devices are allowed in.

caring for the incarcerated

Prison PT

I’ve been a physical therapist (PT) for 19 years. Worked in all different settings: Acute care, inpatient rehab, home health, hospice care, outpatient clinic, telehealth, and I’ve run my own concierge practice. As a yoga therapist and PT I’ve been able to help those see a new perspective around their pain. Not to expect a pain-free life, but to relish a life that exists in the presence of pain—because we will all experience it at some point. But now, I’ve chosen a new path. I wanted to serve the underserved, and I wanted something unique. Working at a prison was not something I thought possible. But it is. There are a small world of PT’s doing just that. But if you search out there to find information on the experience, you won’t find much. I found several sites about nursing for the incarcerated, but the PT landscape was bleak. So, it’s with this intention that I began to share the stories here. A source to inform those who are curious and have questions and provide them a place to land. Please share if you know someone who might be interested.

Prison PT