In a hazy and hot week in early June, counselors working under PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) visited The Uplands for a restorative and experiential training retreat. PREA is a federal act with a purpose to analyze the incidence and effects of prison rape in federal, state, and local institutions and to provide information, resources, recommendations and funding to protect individuals from prison rape. A major aspect of PREA in New York is providing therapeutic care to those who have experienced sexual violence while incarcerated (an often overlooked group), and offering trainings to prison staff to help reduce the incident, or deal with incidences from a trauma-informed lens. The retreat group comprised New York state-wide PREA providers, from various rape crisis organizations across the state.
While this work is always challenging, the past few months has been particularly grueling for PREA caregivers. After a state-wide strike from correctional officers, the calling in of National Guard and a statewide lockdown of all facilities, these counselors were cut off from their clients for weeks, unsure of whether their needs around safety and support were being met. Even after the strike, the impact of that separation and distance reverberated. This group had never come together in a retreat-like fashion, and it felt pertinent to connect, exhale, and process the past half-year or so. As one counselor expressed, “It is a profound privilege to be with and hold others in the depths of their suffering, and this feels like a moment that providers could use some holding and being with, too.”
PREA’s retreat included several restorative, self-regulating practices. Participants found them to be supportive on an individual level while also offering ways to deepen their support of clients with new modalities. These included gentle yoga, a sound bath & relaxation practice, a meditative art session, and forest bathing. The group also had focused work sessions reviewing concepts such as distress tolerance, grounding skills, and healthy coping tactics, as well as a “looking ahead” strategic planning session. A pre-thunderstorm bonfire prompted more visions for the future before the group took refuge in the plush living room, watching the lightning dance across the skies. Throughout their stay, nourishing meals were offered in gratitude by The Uplands kitchen crew, highlighting garden-grown asparagus, wild-caught salmon, local beef & pork meatballs, honey-roasted carrots, and a delightful array of sweets. The unseasonably warm late-spring days ushered the group under the shade of trees in the grassy lawn and beneath umbrellas on the east patio, all while offering overcast views of the sprawling hills.
