There are many things that you have to learn about how to survive a long prison sentence. If you know what to expect inside a prison cell, you’ll be able to prepare yourself and have an easier life behind prison bars. Being sentenced for several years in prison can be very difficult and overwhelming. Here are some things you can do in order to survive long years in prison.

Preparation

First, you’ll have to prepare everything you may need inside the prison. Keep in mind that inside the prison, the Federal Bureau of Prisons will take over your life. In other words, you will have lesser rights than you have outside prison. Try to find out as much information as you can about the prison you’re going in. You don’t want to violate prison rules you know nothing about.

There are different rules in every prison that may vary in its location. You may gain access to prison rule manual: read it. If you violate any rule, even if you’re not aware of it, your stay may get more difficult.

Next, don’t ignore the importance of medical or dental check-up especially if you have a serious health issue. The medical facility inside the prison is not as good as outside prison. If you have enough time for a general check-up, do it. Go to a dentist or have your eyes checked if you need to. In addition to that, you will be allowed to subscribe to magazine or newspaper. If you want to have something to read inside, then you have to subscribe before you get inside the prison.

Lastly, you are only allowed a certain amount of money to take with you inside the prison. Usually, it’s only limited to the amount where you can buy enough of things for personal hygiene such as soap, shampoo and toothpaste. One of the most important things to know about how to survive a long prison sentence is to make sure that you have an adequate amount of money for your personal supplies.

Inside Prison

The first thing that you need to keep in mind once inside the prison is that you can’t trust anyone. If someone tries to be a little too nice to you, ask yourself what could be the hidden motive behind the friendly gesture. You’ll never know where a simple chat can lead you.

Show toughness as much as you can. Don’t show weak emotions that may allow others to take advantage of you. In prison, old time inmates can be manipulative. That goes for prison officials, too. Don’t allow anyone to make you either too happy or angry. If someone can make you laugh as much as he can push you to your limits, he may also gain the power to destroy you.

Refrain from talking too much either to the prison officer or other inmates. People may attack you verbally or physically if they misunderstood your conversation with another inmate or prison officer. Learn how to hold your tongue and you’ll never have a hard time working on how to survive a long prison sentence.