what is it like to do therapy is a womens prison

Take you ever wondered what a typical day would be like for a social worker who works in a prison setting?

This calendar week, I had the pleasance of interviewing Lisa Kays, a social worker, LGSW, who works with women at a prison house in the Northeast region of the Us and will exist able to provide us with a view of what her work entails.

While Lisa has less than a yr of postal service grad piece of work under her belt, she exhibits the insights and learnings of someone with far more experience…

Lisa – Could you provide a bit of your background? What led you lot to become a social worker?

I have ever had an involvement in psychology, only pursued a degree in English literature equally an undergraduate. Then I served in the Peace Corps as an English teacher. Upon my render, I got a master's in journalism and decided I was wholly unfit to be a announcer.

1 of my professors said, "You're an advocate. Use your voice on that." She was right. I kept trying to put the voices of vulnerable populations into my stories and to write from that perspective—not exactly how journalism works.

While in school, I was working in international development, so I stayed on that track, focusing primarily on work in Africa and girls' educational activity. Eventually, I got tired of the travel and shifted into communications and marketing work for a local non-profit focused on economic development for women.

Throughout my years in international development, and then at the local not-profit, I kept finding myself fatigued to direct practice piece of work. I enjoyed talking to the women that were associated with the projects that nosotros funded. When in Rwanda on a monitoring trip for a girls' scholarship projection, I kept saying, "But who is providing the counseling to assistance with the post-traumatic stress these people must exist facing?"

One mean solar day, I got to interview Dr. Satira Streeter, who founded Ascensions Psychological and Customs Services, Inc., in an under-served area of D.C. She had found a manner to bring therapy to those who normally wouldn't take access to information technology, and I was fascinated and inspired by her and the work she was doing. I took her to lunch to ask her more about information technology, and I think that's when I really decided that I was going back to school.

I had been gradually realizing over the years that I wasn't a skillful fit for macro-level work, and knew that my involvement was in clinical therapy. I thought that you lot had to become dorsum for a PhD for a meg years to practice that, and then when I institute out about the MSW, and that information technology allowed you to practice clinical therapy and had a focus on social justice, I was sold.

It took me a few years to work upwards the courage to leave the working world and make that leap into the unknown, only now I look back and don't empathize how I ever thought I could do anything else.

Was there a particular reason that you chose to specialize in substance abuse and work at a women'due south prison house?

It was sort of an accident. My main priority upon graduating was to go a job every bit a therapist, and those aren't easy to come by. Nigh LGSW positions in this surface area seem to be for instance management or piece of work in hospitals, non necessarily therapy.

During my search, I remembered a previous experience in my former life of interviewing and learning nigh Friends of Invitee Business firm, a program for formerly incarcerated women to assistance get them on their feet in one case they are released.

I had been so inspired and impressed past the women'south stories, and horrified to acquire about the many challenges and difficulties that face women upon release from prison – how so many, even if they want to turn their lives around, almost have the cards stacked entirely confronting them.

With this in heed, I wondered if I might be able to discover a job doing therapy in corrections or in a similar program and did a Google search for something like "therapy + prison." I found my current employer and emailed them.

They have a number of programs in different sites, then information technology was kind of funny considering when the 60 minutes woman called me, she sounded almost apologetic when she said, "Well, the simply opening we have right at present is in our women'due south prison." I recall she probably idea I was basics when I said, "Oh great, that's where I was wanting to get!"

So, the addictions piece was an blow, and the prison house piece was sort of a fluke. I however accept no thought why I'm so fatigued to this work or this population. I'm a middle class girl from the mid-due west who barely broke whatever rules growing up.

I'1000 however trying to learn what virtually of the drugs are, what the slang means, how you ingest which drugs. There'south actually no reason that this would make sense for me. Simply for now, at least, it feels like a great fit and I'm enjoying information technology immensely.

I understand you accept some noesis and feel in improvisation. How did y'all become involved in this?

I got into improvisation about 3 years ago…summer of 2008, I remember… I got into information technology primarily because I was looking for a new challenge. I always similar to be doing something a niggling exterior of my comfort zone.

People have ever told me I'k funny, but I was terrified of the idea of functioning or acting–though I recall I'd always thought it looked fun. A friend of mine introduced me to a friend of hers, who worked at WIT (Washington Improv Theater).

He convinced me that anyone could do improv, and it took a number of months and I finally signed up. It's also i of those things that I now wonder, how did I ever not take this in my life?

Do you draw upon improvisation in your work with the women in the prison house (and if so, in what style)?

I perform and teach improvisation and have found that to be tremendously useful to me in this work—both in terms of my own self-care and in how I sit with clients.

Improv has a lot to do with beingness in the moment and listening, and I'1000 fairly certain that my practice of those skills—and others—equally an improviser serves me as a therapist.

But I also use it more directly. My professors were kind enough to indulge me in allowing me to do my inquiry papers during my MSW on the intersection of improv and inventiveness and therapy, and I was shocked by how much literature was already out at that place on the subject.

So, while I don't use a ton of improv in my piece of work, I do bring in some of the games. Prisons are not tranquility places. There is almost constant yelling, banging on doors, and interruptions in groups and sessions. For safety reasons, you can't shut doors all the way when with clients, so the traditional "therapeutic space" we think of is nearly impossible to achieve.

I use improv games sometimes for a few moments to beginning off groups partially as a fashion of transitioning everyone into the space or the room, to draw a differentiation from the "prison house space" of chaos into a safer, quieter space of the group. I utilise a lot of games that focus on building trust, freedom to make mistakes, concrete movement, group cohesion, and just having fun. There is not a lot of genuine laughter or fun in prison, so I try to create some space for that.

I find that the games tin be tremendously helpful. Sometimes, they can shift the mood of a group from sullen and disengaged to a fiddling more lively. This helps the clients to understand the procedure of "simulated it until you brand information technology," or that they tin can exercise something fifty-fifty if they're in a bad mood, or that by getting active, they can fifty-fifty shift out of a bad mood. These aren't things I've told them to realize; they typically report the insight after the game.

I can also do a lot of assessing of where someone is by using the games, often more and then than I tin just by going off of what they say in a group. For instance, does someone choose to participate or sit it out? Are they able to become with the flow, or do they get caught upward in "doing information technology right" or getting impatient when someone else makes a "mistake"? I can also utilize the games to assess the level of group cohesion or to facilitate more cohesion.

I've besides found that processing the game subsequently, which I always do with them, produces some astounding insights, for individuals in terms of seeing their behavior or approach in a new way or in means that they're able to tie the game to the process of recovery. It's pretty absurd.

Could you depict one of the improv games/exercises you do with the women?

One of the games I think they accept a love-hate relationship with is called Zen Count. In it, a group of people stands pretty close together in a circle and tries to count to 21. The fox is that it'south completely spontaneous–no order, no planning–and if anyone says a number out of order or if ii people speak at the same time, the group has to first over from 1.

I originally thought this would be a good one for building group cohesion, as that's how it'due south oft used for improv groups. But it turned out to take a lot more than to do with frustration tolerance, patience, and being okay with "mistakes" for them. This game drives them crazy. Some clients laugh and can accept fun, but oftentimes information technology'southward really frustrating for them. Sometimes they get then frustrated they'll try to cheat by forming a pattern, and when I find this, I unremarkably step in and mess it up, which they don't like very much.

The processing discussions from this one have been very rich. One discussion ended up being about people apologizing and saying, "I'm deplorable" for messing upward, fifty-fifty though obviously it's non anyone's error. And so we talked almost those people tend to exercise that in life, saying "I'm sorry" all the time even when they don't actually need to, and taking responsibility or arraign for things beyond their control.

Another time, I shared with them that some groups can practise this for a long fourth dimension–similar they hit 21 and go along going, to 30, 40, even 100. I'g not sure they believed me, but we had an interesting word most how it'south kind of like recovery in that you accept to keep at it, all the time. And how fifty-fifty if yous mess up (relapse), you don't have to surrender. You can merely brainstorm again and get back on track.

We also sometimes talk about sitting things out, because some people will admit in the debrief that they avert messing upwards by only not proverb anything and letting everyone else exercise it. Then nosotros discuss if that's their mental attitude towards recovery, too, or other things, to mayhap avoid things when they might brand a mistake or fail, instead of giving it a try. And how does that bear on their life? Or virtually support, and whether or non you participate in and support your grouping, or are kind of removed and not really invested.

Their relationship with this game is interesting. They ordinarily like it at first, then go frustrated and detest it, just sometimes a few weeks later a group will enquire me if they tin can do it or someone volition say, "Hey, we haven't washed that counting 1 in a while."

With any of these games it'due south and then interesting, because ofttimes once we talk about it, the behavior in the game is similar to their approach or behavior to other things in life, whether it'southward the program, their recovery, or other goals they have. I'm not surprised by that, as I've found it to be similar for me in my piece of work as an improviser.

Could you depict what a typical day is like for you at your task? (Also, what percentage of your work is clinical vs. case management?)

Very fiddling of my job is example direction. In that location is some case management in terms of looking up resources or writing messages to parole boards or judges, but for the nearly part, the prison itself has instance managers that handle this. Also, usually the client isn't leaving the prison correct later completing our plan, so we don't handle their transition out. Sometimes a client is, but information technology'southward the exception, non the rule.

A typical day for me begins around 7:45 a.m. Prison days offset early, and end early on. I come in, become searched and have my belongings scanned, grab my keys and walk down to "the pod," which is the prison cell cake where our programme is housed.

It'south sort of similar walking through a college campus in some means. When I get on the pod, it's silent for the last time all day. I typically practise some paperwork, like writing treatment plans or printing and signing notes until near 8:30, when count clears, and the clients are released from their cells.

Then nosotros accept our Morn Meeting, and if I'chiliad the Point Staff for the twenty-four hours, I go downwards to facilitate it. And so at 9:00 or so, our clinical day starts, and I take 1-two clients or groups until 11 a.m., when the clients go to lunch, which means we have lunch then.

Our staff typically eats together in our office, and it's usually a mix of chitchat and checking in on clients. Information technology's sort of an informal opportunity to do some case consultations or problem-solving.

The afternoon is similar, with three groups or private sessions until iii:00 p.one thousand., when the clients are locked dorsum into their cells and then we lose admission to them. I'll so do more paperwork until effectually 4:30, and head home.

There'south too supervision and staff meetings thrown in for good measure, of course. And on Fridays, we have the Weekly Activeness, which is an hour where we attempt to program something fun for the customs, such as playing games, or watching a movie.

This is designed to help them encounter that at that place are ways to have fun while sober. Evidently, we're express in prison with what we can practise here, but information technology's a overnice opportunity to collaborate with clients in a slightly less formal style.

What are the aspects of your work that you savour the about?

I really similar working with my clients. I find that they have tremendous force, despite the challenges they've faced in their lives. They are, mostly, innovative, creative, spunky, and resilient.

I think many people are surprised to hear that I like my clients, that I don't dread going to piece of work each day, only it's quite the opposite. While I don't approve of or like many of the things that my clients have done, I do like them as people, and notice that when

I see them through the lens of the totality of their experience, that information technology's very hard to not appreciate and respect the fabric of their stories and how they ended up making some of the choices they did.

In many means, I have a very "There by the grace of God go I" approach to this work, and to my clients. I don't know, had I faced the challenges they did, or had the influences they had, that my story would take had a terribly different outcome.

I'thousand grateful that I had different experiences and resource bachelor to me. That'south the principle that guides me when I get frustrated in this work: I capeesh the opportunity to endeavour to help provide a chance for my clients to learn some of the skills and ideas that I call up many of us accept for granted, and to, if they desire, use them to brand better choices for themselves, and to achieve what they want in life.

I also relish the challenge of working with "mandated" clients. Virtually of our clients are required to complete the program as part of their requirements to be released, or for some information technology'due south a way of getting their sentence reduced. So they may have absolutely no involvement in really being at that place.

For some reason, I enjoy working with those clients, in forging a human relationship and finding some way to foster trust and a sense of promise that they tin improve some function of their life. It's groovy practice in truly letting become and coming together a customer where they are, rather than trying to impose goals or "shoulds."

What are the parts of your work that you lot find near challenging? (Were y'all initially scared working at the prison?)

I was never scared at the prison. I don't know why and I'm not certain what this says about me. Information technology might have been because I had worked in inpatient psychiatry for one of my internships, and I had worked out some of my "fear" in that setting.

Information technology was funny, because when my boss was walking me across the prison house for my interview, some of the clients were greeting her and request about me and at one indicate she said, "Information technology'due south similar they've chosen you already." I was actually just saying in a staff meeting when nosotros were discussing the challenges of adjusting to the environment that I'thou always a footling concerned by how quickly I acculturated.

Working in addictions is challenging. The illness produces such distortions of thought, and and then much deception, that that office tin be frustrating. Therapy is predicated on a notion of an alliance and a space where a client can be honest and 18-carat, and then it tin exist difficult when and so much of the work feels like uncovering charade or having to constantly wonder if a client is being sincere.

Another challenge is working in a Therapeutic Community (TC), wherein I'thou non just a therapist, but I'm too a disciplinarian. We requite consequences for inappropriate behavior, and this is an odd dimension to accept in the therapeutic relationship.

It'due south also different in that I run across my clients all day. I sentinel how they behave with others, see them interact in various ways, and tin also consult with colleagues who interact with them when I'thousand not around. This isn't necessarily "bad," because it definitely adds a lot of "grist for the therapy manufactory," but information technology'southward different, and maintaining the brotherhood can be challenging with these dual roles.

On the other manus, it can as well permit therapy to progress faster and be a footling deeper, considering you're constantly processing real-fourth dimension interactions, instead of descriptions of other situations. And for addictions work, where so much deception or distortions occur, this is really quite critical.

I sometimes wonder about what information technology would be similar to have a therapist following me around everywhere, maxim, "Hmmm, that interaction didn't really happen the way you lot described it. Here'southward what I saw. Interesting. What is that virtually?," instead of just having to trust my written report.

I also have an entire caseload of clients who know one another. Many are cell-mates. This creates interesting challenges in terms of confidentiality, because you have to keep straight who said what in grouping versus in individual sessions.

It'southward too a challenge in terms of perceptions of fairness, considering just every bit we watch the clients, they are also watching us and tin "compare out," so it's important that I treat each of them the aforementioned, that their session times are the aforementioned, that conflicts get mediated objectively.

It's also interesting because so much of what they bring in to sessions is near other clients, so maintaining those boundaries and remembering who said what, and not letting heresay influence my perceptions of clients is an ongoing challenge.

How important do you lot feel it is for social workers (who are not focusing on a population suffering from addictions) to study almost substance abuse?

I recall it's helpful for whatever social worker or therapist to have grooming in substance abuse considering it impacts so many people. Fifty-fifty if you're non working with the individuals who are directly abusing substances, you lot're likely to exist working with families or friends who are affected by it, or with adults who grew upward in a household with it.

And, typically, with substance abuse, information technology'south non likely to show up as the initial presenting problem, unless you lot're in a setting focused on that. So I call up that makes it important for clinicians and example workers to understand the dynamics and signs of substance utilize, and so that they will be able to identify it fifty-fifty if it's not beingness articulated as "the problem" or so that they can be prepared to work on information technology if it shows upward months or years into treatment—equally I call back it often could due to the nature of the disease.

What were some of the things that you did in order to fairly prepare yourself for this position?

I got this position straight out of my MSW program, so beyond the Chemical Dependency class I took, I didn't take additional training. I definitely feel I notwithstanding have a lot to learn, so I use my supervision sessions and interactions with colleagues who have been in the field longer than I have to learn, and do as much reading every bit I tin can. I hope to take CEU courses related to substance abuse too.

Finally, what key piece(s) of communication would you lot offer MSW students who just recently graduated or are about to graduate?

I am so grateful to my MSW plan for teaching us almost cocky-care. When I first started this job, I was plagued with feelings of insecurity and a constant sense that I wasn't doing a skilful enough job. I felt like I didn't know enough clinically to exist helpful, that I was constantly falling brusk.

Then, i day, I remembered these meditations that one of my professors had given the states in a presentation on vicarious trauma for clinicians, about being kind to ourselves in the work, letting go of the outcome, and trusting the resiliency of our clients, etc. I printed those out, stuck them above my desk, and had a serious chat with myself.

Self Care Meditations by Dr. Eileen Dombo and Dr. Cathie Gray 

Please notation that these are from an article by Drs. Dombo and Greyness in press to come up out in the Journal of Christianity and Social Piece of work.

I reminded myself that I was new at this, that I was arresting a ton of information, not only nearly clients, but likewise merely about the task – learning the figurer systems, the paperwork, the rules of a TC, the rules of a prison.

And that peradventure I could give myself a break, and trust that I didn't need to know it all right now and that every bit long as I kept doing my best for my clients, learning and asking for the help I needed in supervision, and learning on my own, that I was doing a skillful enough task.

I think the first task out can be challenging. You lot are put into a new environment with much less back up than we got as students. Y'all have a larger caseload and more than responsibility. It'south important to recognize that, I call back.

Yep, nosotros demand to have high standards for ourselves and constantly strive to improve our practise, but we too need to be realistic well-nigh our own humanity and requite ourselves the time to acquire and accommodate.

I of the things I find that I work on a lot with my clients is helping them proceeds a sense of compassion for themselves, and I have constitute that it's been extremely important for me to cultivate this within myself as I practice this work.

I call up that's probably the most important lesson that I'd desire to share with others starting out in this profession.

Thank you so much, Lisa, for sharing with us these important self-care tips and providing us with an overview of what it's like to conduct clinical social work within the setting of a prison.

You lot may follow Lisa on twitter at @LisaKaysMSW.

What questions/comments come up to your mind most working with clients in prison or group piece of work in full general? What are your thoughts most this type of work and self-intendance?

Salvage Salve

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Source: https://www.socialwork.career/2011/12/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-prison-social-worker.html

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