This is the struggle that every inmate faces every day of incarceration. Inmate's toughest time is the first six months of being locked-up. The adjustment of being told what to do, when to do it and where to be at certain times are not easy to adjust to. One of the main reasons that InmateAid was created it to allow the people on the outside to help their loved ones on the inside. Getting into a suitable routine is the

Federal prison is not worse than state prison, but it is prison nonetheless. The child pornography charge is not going to make his bit any easier. They send most of these type inmates to a facility in Arizona known for this. They tend to be safer among like-charges inmates. RDAP is a fantastic program if your inmate has put his substance abuse in the record with the Pre-Sentence Report prior to sentencing. This is the ONLY way to qualify. Plus,

Halfway houses are a way for the correctional divisions to ease an inmate back into society. It is a much looser environment but there is still supervision that residents must abide by. Inmates will be tested for drug or alcohol use and one small slip gets them sent back to serve the full sentence. The staff monitors the re-entry process encouraging work release and reintegration back to the family unit. The location is usually the nearest facility to where the

Solitary confinement is 24 hours a day lock-down. Three showers, three hours of rec per week. They can receive mail, reading material, limited commissary and one 15-minute phone call per week. The guards feed them through a slot in the door and when removed to shower or go to rec, they are handcuffed during the procedure. The loneliness is the worst part. If you are able, get them books, newspapers, and magazine subscriptions (email us for prices, we have really

This is a complex question best answered privately - the short public answer is it can be as bad as TV or a tame as a camp setting with white collar non-violent offenders. It really depends upon where he is sentenced to do his time. Other factors are the type of prison - whether its a state or federal facility, the length of the sentence, the crime and the sometimes the determining circumstances of the crime. But an inmate that

Because space is limited, it is difficult to transfer inmates. Inmates are assigned to facilities based on their custody level, safety and security issues and available space. In addition, an inmate may have their own reasons for not wanting to be transferred. For example, he/she may be making progress in the programs they are currently enrolled in; or he/she may have concerns about being housed with certain people at another facility. Some inmates find it easier to separate from their

The journey ahead seems impossible. Not knowing is actually worse than being there. The human spirit will prevail as you figure things out. You must keep to yourself and not get in other people's business. Do things that will improve you while there. Read, take college courses, exercise. Improve YOU and take care of YOU. Do the time, don't let the time "do you".

There is NO internet access allowed in prison except at the state level where the Kansas Department of Corrections allows monitored Internet use. It is the only such area that does. At the federal level, there are email pilot programs in use that I used often, but there was no internet access. There are delays in the messaging and the charges were high but it was convenient.

The separation from family is terrible, but it's tougher on them to go on without you. But the worst thing that I had to deal with was the death of my mother. I was not there for others suffering, for her funeral nor was I able to feel closure.