Introduction

This is the beginning of my third year working in a medium security state prison. For obvious reasons I can not divulge the location of this prison and if you should ever guess as to it's location, just keep it to yourslf.

I should have started this blog two years ago. I have found that the public don't have the fainest clue as to what goes on behind the razorwire and have been either sheltered most of their lives or have only ever been exposed to the prison system if they had a family member or friend that has been incarcerated, seen it on t.v., which is really nothing more than sensationalizing it, or reading what little is ever printed in books or newspapers. In my experience over the last two years I realize I never had a clue either.

I am just going to share some stories of everyday life in the prison that I work in. I think you'll find it slightly enlightening, possibly you won't believe me, some of you will be absolutely horror struck, but everything I will say here will be absolutely factual truth. I was once asked by one of the practitioners that I work with why I continued to work with the most forgettable people in the world for only $11.50 an hour. My answer: "Morbid fascination." Before I moved here from Los Angeles, California, I was working as a Medical Assistant for a doctor in Beverly Hills for about $20 an hour, just to give you an idea as to how profound this statement was.

I come from a family that is riddled with law enforcement and have been exposed to that all my life. My mother was a Medical Assistant while I was growing up and my father was a Paramedic for awhile, so First Response and "all things bad and gorey" have been part of my life. I've pretty much "seen it all." I have worked with and treated all walks of life, even dealt with a few drug users and such. I have even touched on the surreal life the underworld for a bit. None of this compares to the life of prison inmates. I am still finding out how niave I can be.

My husband, who was my boyfriend at the time and an officer at the same prison I work at, took 6 months to persuade me to leave my crappy-ass job as an appointment scheduler with an MRI group and finally apply as a Certified Nurses Assistant in the Long Term Care Unit at the medium security prison. Every prison show I ever watched that showed medical personnel working in a prison and getting beat up flew through my mind and I flat out said "no!" Then he started telling me about his day and how there were a lot of other women who worked out there and they never had any problems. After hearing this over and over again I thought to myself, "how bad could it be". So I agreed to put in an application, but I was only signing up for part-time, that way if I didn't like it I could quit and I would still have my day job. I could always use the extra money anyway. In 6 months I quit my other job and began working in the prison full time. I had gotten hooked. I was a law enforcement junky. This was the best job I ever had since I had left my doctor in Beverly Hills!

And so my fascination with life behind the razorwire began.........