Solitary confinement is given to inmates for some reasons such as disciplinary sanction, to protect an inmate, to prevent situations of risk or during criminal investigations. However, even though solitary confinement has some functions, it also can give some bad effects mentally and physically. So, how about the effects of solitary confinement on the brain and how long before you go crazy?
The information that I got from an online source namely metro.co.uk in an article entitled “This is what solitary confinement can do to your brain in just 72 hours”, it is explained that in a TV experiment, it has shown how quickly solitary confinement can seriously affect people’s brain where hallucinations appear after 72 hours. In the experiment, where it is for Channel 5’s show In Solitary, there was a single mum who was locked in a Portakabin for five days. Initially, she said that she hoped for some ‘alone time’. However, the thing that happened was that three days into the challenge, she started vomiting and she also saw things. She also talked to her own hands. There were a series of shocking moments that were shown to the camera about how the solitary confinement was affecting her.
On that site, it is also explained that in the UK, there are around 1,500 cells for inmates in ‘segregation’ or solitary. Meanwhile, in America, there are around 80,000 inmates who are locked up alone. The psychological effects of solitary confinement are documented well and the effects are terrifying. If someone is locked up in solitary for 15 days, it can be enough to cause permanent psychological damage where the effects range from anxiety to paranoia and even to inability to form coherent thoughts. When inmates in solitary are already mentally ill, the effects are even worse. In 2011, there were experts from the UN who called for the practice of prolonged sentences in solitary to be banned because it was the same as torture. Juan E. Mendez from the UN even said that solitary confinement is a harsh measure which is contrary to rehabilitation, the aim of the penitentiary system.
So, there are a lot of aspects that the authorities need to consider when they place inmates in solitary confinement. The place where the inmates will be placed for solitary confinement, the amenities, and even the effects that will get after solitary confinement must be considered as well. On the APT site, it is explained that because of its effects on the physical and mental health of people, solitary confinement should be limited where it should not be given more than 15 days and it also needs procedural rules that help prevent all abusive and arbitrary use of the sanction.
Mental Health Effects of Solitary Confinement
According to Dr. Sharon Shalev, the author of A Sourcebook on Solitary Confinement, as explained on the Medical News Today site, the mental health effects that can happen from solitary confinement are listed below.
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- anxiety and stress
- depression and hopelessness
- anger, irritability, and hostility
- panic attacks
- worsened preexisting mental health issues
- hypersensitivity to sounds and smells
- problems with attention, concentration, and memory
- hallucinations that can give effects to all of the senses
- paranoia
- poor impulse control
- social withdrawal
- outbursts of violence
- psychosis
- fear of death
- self-harm or suicide
Physical Health Effects of Solitary Confinement
As also explained on the Medical News Today site, according to Dr. Shalev’s book entitled A Sourcebook on Solitary Confinement, here are the physical health effects of solitary confinement.
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- chronic headaches
- eyesight deterioration
- digestive problems
- dizziness
- excessive sweating
- fatigue and lethargy
- genitourinary problems
- heart palpitations
- hypersensitivity to light and noise
- loss of appetite
- muscle and joint pain
- sleep problems
- trembling hands
- weight loss
During inmates are placed in solitary confinement, they will lack physical activity where it will lead to difficulty in managing or preventing certain health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease.
How Solitary Confinement Affects People’s Brain
According to psychologytoday.com, in an article entitled “The Effects of Solitary Confinement on the Brain, here is the explanation about how solitary confinement affects people’s brain.
It is different between loneliness (the imposition of social isolation) and aloneness (the choice of being alone). Since these are different, the brain also reacts differently. If you experience loneliness, it causes changes in the brain where it is possible to lead to more serious consequences such as depression and other mood disorders. However, some of the changes are able to be reversed if the suitable social interactions are established again and you engage in social activities again.
There is an ex-inmate named Robert King who was in solitary confinement for 29 years and he shared his experience that after he was confined in a 6×9-foot cell for almost 30 years with very limited contact with other humans or physical exercise, it has consequences on his overall health including his brain. He says that solitary confinement changed the way his brain worked. After he was out of solitary confinement, he had trouble recognizing faces and needed to retrain his eyes to learn what a face was like. Besides, his sense of direction was also messed up and he could not follow a simple route in the city by himself.
One of the most terrible effects of chronic social isolation like extreme solitary confinement is the decrease in the size of the hippocampus where it is the brain region related to learning, memory, and spatial awareness. The continual stress from extreme solitary confinement of isolation causes a loss of hippocampal plasticity where it is a decrease in the formation of new neurons, and the eventual failure in hippocampal function. On the other hand, the amygdala increases its activity as a response to isolation where this area mediates fear and anxiety.
There is an important component of sensory deprivation from solitary confinement. Solitary confinement cells are small and they have no window. So, inmates who are placed there will experience sensory deprivation where it contributes to important health impairments.
Solitary confinement as a punishment is like a form of torture where it gives serious consequences for neurological health. So, teams of researchers are investigating further about this practice and they are learning about the possibility of maintaining activities, sensory input and circadian rhythms, to prevent large changes in the brain.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
