Usually I look at myself at the mirror and I see only my reflection

… while since I started meditating I can see even beyond the image… I can see deep inside myself, what I have inside

… think more about things and also be more rational about the things.

– Inmate, long-sentence prison, Italy –

PRISON WITHOUT STRESS

In collaboration with, and inspired by the FRIENDS project, Carcere Senza Stress (Prison Without Stress), a program based on Quiet Time with Transcendental Meditation, was implemented for guards and inmates in a prison for long sentencesin the North of Italy within the project “S-cateniamo la mente!” funded by the call Libero Reload 2018 promoted by the Association A Buon Diritto Onlus. The project has been financed by the bank foundation “Fondazione San Paolo”. In the context of this project 16 guards and 16 inmates have been trained and pre/post -tested using the the research protocol and the tests developed within the FRIENDS project.

The director of the prison has been very supportive and two conferences have been organized to present the project: the first one within the implementing prison for long sentences, with the participation of the director, about 50 inmates, guards and a representative of the province – prison sector;

The second conference was organised at the prison for short sentences, in the same area, with the participation of the director and inmates, guards and school teachers of the area to expand the project to the other nearby prison for short sentences. Both conferences were followed by a press release resulting in many articles in the press.

Read more about it below!

Paintings from inmates at the San Michele prison, Alessandria (IT) (Taken from the above video of experiences).

“Prison Without Stress” project presented in the San Michele Prison

Alessandria (IT).

The Prison Without Stress project began at the end of April 2019 and lasted one year, utilizing the Transcendental Meditation Program to reduce stress and promote psychophysical well-being and a better quality of life for prisoners, officers and prison workers.

16 inmates and 16 agents and operators from the San Michele Prison and the Alessandria Cantiello and Gaeta prison learned the Transcendental Meditation technique as part of a pilot project financed by the LIBERO RELOAD 2018 Call of the Compagnia di San Paolo, whose objective is to promote a cultural and social conception of the penal system that places the individual at the center in the ownership of his rights and responsibilities, promoting the improvement of the quality of life and prison conditions.

The Prison Without Stress project is a branch of the FRIENDS project, supported by the Erasmus+ program of the European Commission, created to promote social inclusion and intercultural education in all education and training contexts through the implementation of the Transcendental Meditation technique.

Elena Lombardi Vallauri, director of the Penitentiary Institutes of Alessandria welcomed the participants and promoters of the project:

Roberto Baitelli of the Maharishi Foundation explained that stress today is a phenomenon of epidemic proportions with serious social repercussions, and in prisons it has reached an unsustainable level which heavily affects the health of prisoners and staff, leads to the growth of infringements of regulations and other negative behaviors. It also hinders the rehabilitation process.

The natural antidote to stress is rest. The Transcendental Meditation technique, whose numerous benefits are documented by 700 scientific studies, provides such deep rest that it dissolves already accumulated stress and increases resistance to stress. Over the past 50 years, Transcendental Meditation has been used successfully in prisons in many countries. In the United States it has been used in maximum security prisons, such as San Quentin, Folsom and Walpole with excellent results, which include the reduction of anxiety, depression, fatigue and anger, a criminal way of thinking, psychological stress and traumatic symptoms; a reduction in breaches of prison rules and a 30% reduction in recidivism.

Paolo Menoni, of the Maharishi Foundation, teacher of the Transcendental Meditation technique in the Prison Without Stress project, described the project underway in the penitentiary institutions of Alessandria and reported the experiences of some inmates. Both due to the prison conditions themselves and the overcrowding, life in prison is very stressful. If it is not possible to change these conditions, at least it is possible to offer prisoners and all those who work in prison a tool that helps them draw on their own internal resources and increases their psychophysical well-being.

As some participants reported:

  Meditation helped me overcome many difficulties: now my thoughts are beautiful and positive.

Meditation is finally making me find that inner peace that I have been looking for since birth.

Subsequently Federico Traversa presented the book “Boom, Journey into Transcendental Meditation“, (Chinaski Edizioni) which collects numerous testimonies on this topic from qualified teachers, meditation practitioners, doctors, artists and researchers.

The aim of this research was to examine the efficacy of Transcendental Meditation in a prison setting, by applying the QT/TM intervention in a sample composed by inmates and prison officers (32 individuals; 16 inmates and 16 officers; Mean age=47,38; SD=9,93; 78,1% M). The sample was evaluated before and after intervention with the same battery of questionnaires used for teachers and staff (i.e., anxiety, depression, perceived stress, positive and negative affect, life satisfaction – see previous paragraphs). ANOVA for repeated measures was used to evaluate the effect of the QT/TM intervention in the total sample. A significant decrease in anxiety and perceived stress was observed, together with a significant improvement in emotional well-being (more positive emotions, less negative emotions).

How can the Transcendental Meditation Program help prisons and governments worldwide reduce recidivism, cut costs, and positively impact lives?

Any question?

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