Stress Management for CO’s

If you have ever been in a prison, you know that the environment can make you feel tense, unsafe, and insecure. These feelings are usually something that a person does not have to go through on a regular basis. However, if you are a correctional officer, this is your normal state of being. Having to endure these feelings constantly can take a toll on one’s mental health and it’s important to know how to manage this work-related stress.

How to Manage Stress

At the end of the day, your health comes first before any job or anything else. If you are finding yourself having a hard time managing your stress, here’s some helpful tips on how to manage your stress.

1.    Eliminate Unnecessary Stress

If possible, you should be avoiding stressful people or situations at work. If the person or situation is not something you need to be a part of, then it’s okay to say no and walk away.

2.    Accept the Things You Cannot Change

How others think, feel, behave, and act is out of your control. When you learn to accept that, only then can you focus on changing your own reactions and responses to certain people and situations. You are in charge of how you think, feel, and react and you are your most important tool in finding peace.

3.    Make Sure you Find Time to Relax and Unwind

Finding time to relax after work is important for anyone, but it’s especially important when you are in a highly stressful career. Spending time with your loved ones can release endorphins and allow you to untense from the stress of work. It’s important to not constantly isolate yourself when you are feeling down.

4.    Practice a Healthy Lifestyle

Your mental health is only as good as your physical health. You can better your physical, and in turn your mental health, by exercising regularly, eating healthy, avoiding alcohol and drugs, and getting enough sleep. When you feel good about yourself, your self-confidence and self-esteem increases which can help reduce your stress.

If you’re a CO and interested in joining a community of your peers that want to work on managing stress, please DM or email (psychdrmanning@gmail.com) me today so I can share information with you about a stress management course I'm currently creating exclusively for COs.

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Corrections One

PTSD and Correctional Officers: What You Should Know

PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is defined as a condition of persistent mental and emotional stress occurring as a result of injury or severe psychological shock, typically involving disturbance of sleep and constant vivid recall of the experience, with dulled responses to others and to the outside world. When you think of PTSD, what comes to mind? Most people think of army veterans, police officers, or doctors, but there is another occupation that is not getting the attention it deserves. Correctional officers have a highly stressful job that can have negative effects on their mental health and it’s important to have an open discussion about how to fix this issue.

Correctional Officer Mental Health Statistics

According to a California correctional officer survey conducted by University of California, Berkeley, 1 in 3 correctional officers have experienced at least one symptom of PTSD. As a point of comparison, about 1 in 7 combat veterans are diagnosed with PTSD. Forty percent of officers have reported having nightmares about an event at work that was frightening, horrible, or upsetting.

The Effects of PTSD

Without proper treatment, these symptoms of PTSD can affect their everyday life and slowly deteriorate their mental health. Post-traumatic stress disorder not only effects the lives of the correctional officer, but it can also put strain on their relationships and lives of their friends and families. If you or someone you know are struggling with mental health, it is important to contact your doctor to get the help you deserve.

The Importance of Discussing Mental Health for Correctional Officers

The topic of mental health is an important discussion to have in any profession, but it’s especially important for a highly stressful job such as a correctional officer. The things that CO’s witness or experience daily, such as vicious assaults or mandatory overtime, would cause stress to anyone.  I see firsthand in the prison I serve, that there are, unfortunately, not enough resources and discussions being had about how these events mentally affect them. A recent traumatic event at my prison has lit a fire in my spirit to assist COs in managing the challenges they face. I believe that if we start to have this discussion now and take the necessary steps towards better mental health, then the quality of life for correctional officers can be improved.

The Statistics on Mental Health

According to a California correctional officer survey conducted by University of California, Berkeley, 50% of officers say they rarely feel safe at work. More than one-third of all correctional officers have been told by someone they know that they have been more anxious or depressed since working in corrections. One in three of them have experienced at least one symptom of PTSD and ten percent of them have had suicidal thoughts. These statistics are alarming but given the statistics on how much violence CO’s must endure in their careers, these statistics aren’t surprising.

What Can Be Done

 I truly believe that COs deserve to have the mental health resources they need more readily available to them. They need to understand that talking to someone does not make them “weak” or “crazy,” it makes them human. There must be an open and non-judgmental discussion involving mental health for CO’s and they should be able to easily access the help they deserve. 

Therefore, I'm on a mission to build a community of COs that are ready to hit the reset button on their lives. You've got one life to live; don't wait until retirement to start fully living it. DM me if you’re ready to reclaim your life by using therapeutic tools that have been proven to reduce stress!