ALICEVILLE FCI PEER SUCCESS
THINK TANK/ MENTORSHIP
The best ideas are those that come in response to a great need. The greater the challenge, the more powerful the outcome. After the pandemic, our compound seemed like there was a gloom cast overhead. It was as if everyone was doing their time like they were in the county jail, living only for tomorrow and for their immediate satisfactions.
Over the years, when mentoring individuals in the gym and in other various ways, I had been told too many times:
” I will lose 50 lbs. when I get out ” or ” I’ll worry about a job when I hit the streets “.
NO one seems to see the forest for the trees.
Captain said to me, ” Celeste, what are we going to do about this drug problem? ” It was probably a rhetorical question. I began to mull it over in my mind.
I thought of the word innovate: one of the definitions is to make changes, do something in a new way.
Whereas, we usually hear this word in reference to industry, science, technology; in our current situation, an entire prison filled mostly with folks who are not living a healthy life- we have a formula we can go by.
Here are the first initial thoughts:
1) when we focus on the negative, that is what grows in our lives
2) for me, a drug problem was only part of the situation- my entire life was toxic, unhealthy relationships pared with the addiction, I was certainly not taking the best care of myself, naturally this effected my finance, my occupation and my connections to family and friends.
3) most states now agree that drug addiction is not a character flaw or some moral defect, it’s actually an illness
4) there are a lot of healthy women here who would find the win win if the air was filled with more positivity
5) I know exactly what it took me to learn to live a happy, healthy, productive life here- I just wrote a book on it!
Here are our obstacles:
1) the prison, like everywhere else in the world, is short staffed
– this means that finding a department to help us to bring this wellness to everyone, is tricky at best.
The solution, an in- house, mentor program headed by a think tank.
Everyday, while out in the garden, I looked for more details to follow.
I used the basic methods of my book, IN THE ABSENCE OF PAINT- the method I used and found most effective here in healing my own life and in helping others.
1) Allow yourself the space and TIME TO MOURN your life:
– we all suffered various degrees of loss on our road to prison- some lost everything ( home, belongings, freedom and children, perhaps even their health )
– just because our loss was often self induced, earned through our misdeeds, doesn’t mean it effects us
– physiologically any different
– cortisol floods our body
– deep depression becomes a very real threat,
– hopelessness or anger take front row
In a perfect world, the first month here would be filled with small safe circles with writing workshops, yoga, meditation and prayer.
2) Putting on you HOOLA HOOP ( establishing healthy boundaries )
– literally drawing a circle around you the size of a hoola hoop
– be mindful of the persons you allow into that circle
– people who can then reach into you mind, bare influence
The most important part of the hoola hoop phase is to retreat long enough to establish what your boundaries are.
Everyone has different boundaries and this is to be respected.
Often, AIC’s have come from place where PHYSICAL AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE were a factor.
In response, we use the POWER AND CONTROL WHEEL as our guide to see what the red flags are in relationships.
In the workshop, the method is simple:
– study the wheel
– write outside each spoke your past experiences
– flip it over and write in each spoke, what you would like your relationships to be like
3) In the BOUNCE BACK PHASE of your life;
– fall in love with yourself ( this is one of the things that will come from the seclusion of the 2 former stages )
-show yourself love by: eliminating self criticism
be kind and positive to yourself and those around you
be slow to respond and slow to decide
acknowledge your efforts
celebrate your successes
let go of stress
trust yourself
forgive yourself
strengthen your spiritual connections
nurture yourself
visualize your dreams
express gratitude
laugh out loud
find beauty all around you
Once you begin to weave these practices into your life, you’ll begin to see your self and the world around you more clearly;
creativity will begin to flow.
Small success lead to big success- if you are struggling to find your BOUNCE BACK POWER, start each day with one small goal, even if it means ironing a stack of laundry! Once the stack is complete, you will feel and awakening of power and strength.
4) FINDING OUR BALANCE- Another wheel inters the picture.
The 8 Dimensions of Wellness:
– Physical ( nutrition and movement )
– Emotional
-Intellectual
– Social/ Community
– Environmental
-Occupational
-Spiritual
– Financial
It is my belief that when you are trying to rebuild a broken life, generally, the best idea is to begin with the PHYSICAL SPOKE.
I like to point to the wheel and ask, ” is everything rolling along smoothly for you? ” If not, check the wheel and check for fractures.
Each new day brings opportunity for positive change in our lives. We make a conscious effort to move two steps forward or three steps back- from decision to decision.
Change is in the definition of the living, in science they say, ” anything that isn’t changing is dead “
Our goal as mentors is not to judge, criticize or fix, anyone.
Our position is to be a living example in various aspects of our very diverse lives.
By making a conscious effort to make healthy life choices.
So let’s say you aren’t quite there yet, some of your spokes are still roped off with crime-scene, red tape.
Take a deep breath and focus on the spokes that you can grasp. So many times I hear, ” I’m a work in progress”.
This indicates work. Day by day, goal by goal, we put in the work.
What we know is that a good leader never asks anyone to do anything they aren’t willing to do themselves, and for this reason, the mentors started with themselves:
-Setting goals
-writing bios/
(the base for their re-entry plan)
-attending meetings
– working as a team
And so we begin to do our best in maintaining healthy daily schedules. It’s not difficult. We have to keep in mind that it’s easier here to start new healthy habits than it would be out there where life, children and serious responsibilities are happening.
We know that multiple health problems are associated with low self-esteem; anxiety and depression flood harmful chemicals into our body and disease follows.
When we begin to live a healthy, powerful day- scheduled with creative ways to live life to the fullest- we find in ourselves,
TRUE VALUE, A GREATER SENSE OF SELF, EMPOWERMENT, REAL SELF ESTEEM, THE OGANIC ABILITY TO MANIFEST THE LIFE WE INVISION FOR OURSELVES.
Remember, true manifestation requires actual work. See it, Speak it, Write it, Do it.
Setting little tiny goals each new morning, taking two steps forward, lining up your daily actions every day, with your goals for tomorrow MAKES YOU FEEL CONFIDENT.
High self esteem expands your life experience and begins to build like a snow ball rolling down a mountain; all the sudden, you find yourself living a life of joy.
