Correctional Supervisor Stress

A Correctional Officer has many responsibilities the care, custody and control of the inmates under their supervision. It is their responsibility to maintain order, enforce the rules and regulations of the facility and accomplish this in a safe and secure manner. Whether the Correctional Officer is preparing inmates for a transport to a court appearance, processing a new intake, supervising distribution of meals, conducting a head count, calculating gain time for a sentenced inmate, conducting a security check or operating a control room they must maintain their responsibilities of care, custody and control. A Correctional Officer’s daily tasks are generally supervised by a Corporal, Sergeant, Lieutenant, or Captain. A Correctional Supervisor …show more content…
Correctional facilities put significant effort in recruiting and hiring the best by choosing the most fit and sound minded men and women. Correctional facilities require male and female Correctional Officers to be emotionally tough under pressure and think quickly and flexibly in stressful situations. We train them to confront and overcome challenges they will face behind the walls. We train them and turn them loose hoping we have instilled the knowledge and trusting their breaking points are controlled or never reached. You remember the old saying, "Only the strong will survive"? Correctional Officers who can think on their toes may either effectively supervise the bad guys without becoming one themselves or sink from the challenges and stressors from the job. Haunted by the trauma some Correctional Officers turn to the bottle, nicotine, or even drugs for relief as a defense against their emotions. Not realizing they are adding to their problems by creating an addiction. Those breaking points become harder and harder to control. Sadly, it's not uncommon to see Correctional Officer’s neglect their health, ignore the signs of high blood pressure, excessive weight gain or loss. All of which can take its toll on an individual and chisel away their …show more content…
She had allowed herself to be manipulated into becoming romantically involved with the inmate and demanded she sneak contraband into the jail for him. Feeling as if there were no other alternative she did it. She continued sneaking contraband in to the inmate throughout his jail sentence. This ultimately had her feeling trapped, unable to escape the tangled wed she wove she began to use drugs then resigned from the agency. I ran into her in a department store a few years later and she told me her story over a cup of coffee. She told me after leaving the agency she continued to use drugs and ended up hitting bottom. Through rehabilitation treatment and faith in religion she had overcome a drug addiction. Although, she had started a new life and was finally back on a better track in life she would always regret the decisions she made that impacted her life and ruined her career as a Correctional Officer. I couldn’t for the life of me understand how a person so strong willed and motivated to have a successful career could be manipulated into throwing it all away. I left the coffee shop that day shaking my head, feeling confused, but blessed, thankful to have had the strength to make it throughout my career and determined to succeed in everything I do. That day I set another goal, to use my strengths to help others with a