This quilt is meant to represent the mental health struggles of incarcerated individuals. In my career, I have worked with many individuals that have struggled with post-incarceration syndrome. It is characterized by a range of psychological, emotional, and social difficulties that can arise because of being imprisoned. These difficulties can include depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), difficulty adjusting to life outside of prison, and difficulty forming and maintaining relationships. People experiencing mental health crises while incarcerated are struggling to survive and therefore cannot heal without proper treatment. It's clear that there are no easy answers to solve this national crisis, but discussions have begun! 

What to look for: The improv/abstract piecing is an improv perspective of a person behind bars, including the red outline of a hand/arm reaching up and for help. Up the right side you’ll see the words embroidered “Help Me Heal.” 

Book recommendation(s):  These books are not meant to replace medical intervention and/or skilled therapy.

Waiting for an Echo: The Madness of American Incarceration  https://a.co/d/7hhYtna

A Mind-Shift: From Prison to Healing: A Guide of Post Incarceration Syndrome in Women https://a.co/d/cNp2Iq8

Houses of Healing : A Prisoner's Guide to Inner Power and Freedom https://a.co/d/cIlkM8E

Learn More: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/03/mental-heath-inmates

From PrisonPolicy.org:  "Many of the defining features of incarceration are linked to negative mental health outcomes, including disconnection from family, loss of autonomy, boredom and lack of purpose, and unpredictability of surroundings. Prof. Craig Haney, an expert on the psychological effects of imprisonment and prison isolation, explains, “At the very least, prison is painful, and incarcerated persons often suffer long-term consequences from having been subjected to pain, deprivation, and extremely atypical patterns and norms of living and interacting with others.” And as Dr. Seymour L. Halleck has observed, “The prison environment is almost diabolically conceived to force the offender to experience the pangs of what many psychiatrists would describe as mental illness.”  Click here to read more of this article.

From NPR:  "In her new book Insane: America's Criminal Treatment of Mental Illness, Roth investigates the widespread incarceration of the mentally ill in the U.S., and what she sees as impossible burdens placed on correctional officers to act as mental health providers when they're not adequately trained." Click here to listen to an 8 minute interview with the author.

"Today, nearly half the people in U.S. jails and more than a third of those in U.S. prisons have been diagnosed with a mental illness, compared to about a fifth in the general population." Click here to read Alisa Roth's report on The Truth About Deinstitutionalization.

From American Psychological Association:   About 37 percent of people in prison have a history of mental health problems, according to a 2017 report from the U.S. Department of Justice. More than 24 percent have been previously diagnosed with major depressive order, 17 percent with bipolar disorder, 13 percent with a personality disorder and 12 percent with post-traumatic stress disorder. The numbers are even higher for people in jail, where one-third have been previously diagnosed with major depressive disorder and almost one-quarter with bipolar disorder.  “We lock up people with mental health problems when we should really be treating these people in the community,” says Fagan. “In the absence of that, prisons and jails become de facto treatment centers.”

Post-Incarceration Syndrome: This is NOT a formal diagnosis (yet). From NIA:  "Post-incarceration syndrome (PICS) is a psychiatric disorder that affects individuals who have been incarcerated and then are released back into society. It is characterized by a range of psychological, emotional, and social difficulties that can arise as a result of being imprisoned. These difficulties can include depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), difficulty adjusting to life outside of prison, and difficulty forming and maintaining relationships. 

Resources:

Click here to read about "Improving Mental Health for Inmates"

Stepping Up is a national county initiative reducing overincarceration of people with mental illnesses.