Childhood trauma and incarceration
Who doesn’t like a bit of the Eagles ?
I had a shock last week , I shouldn’t have been surprised , all the information we know about childhood trauma causing behaviour problems . ACEs increase the risk of substance abuse , alcohol , gambling addiction , causing shame and anger , isolation , the list goes on , so why I was shocked I have no idea . I just feel like Ive lifted a rock and found a crab under it , Im talking about the prison population and childhood trauma .
Should we really feel sorry for criminals now ?
I know its not the easiest of sells , violent , drug using , abusive , often ( pardon me for this )black or hispanic if were talking about the States , they may not be the most engaging group of people you have ever met, they may not be on your next party list.
Im going to change you mind
But what if you slipped their shoes on for a little while , what if you saw things from their perspective. A 2018 study by Bangor University in Wales by Dr Kat Ford involving 468 inmates at His Majesty’s prison in Bridgend found that almost half 46% had experienced a high level of childhood abuse , they reported that they had at least 4 or more ACEs in their childhood. A third of all prisoners had experienced at least one ACE.
Compassion
The situation in America is as bad or worse , Fritzi Horseman the founder of the Compassion Prison Project first volunteered in a prison relatively recently in 2018 . He was shocked , his words best describe his reaction , “This isn’t a prison , this is a trauma centre and nobody knows it “. He found through his project that ….( brace yourself) 98% of prisoners had experienced childhood trauma . I watched a clip from CBS news from March 2032 called ” Identifying childhood trauma a key to rehabilitating, reintegrating prison inmates into society” the reporter was Itay Hod. The report showed prisoners , of all backgrounds stood in a healing circle of around 200 , this is the work of the Compassion Prison Project , this has now spread nationwide . These inmates are recycled in and out of the system , some unfortunately repeating the trauma cycle into future generations.
Just a snippet
This is just a snippet of what I found out for my new book , but if we are to progress as a society we must recognise the link and move towards a trauma informed system that learns from this new science on childhood trauma to tackle trauma at source . Some people , however difficult it may be to face the fact , need to address their own trauma , asking them what has happened to them rather than what’s wrong with them might be a start.
Anyway have a great day , see you soon …..
