The side effects of confinement
The shutdown and physical distancing has put most of the world in confinement. Cutting social ties and disconnecting us from all the people we used to meet. This has been ongoing for months and will stay that way for many more months. How have you been feeling? Anguish, anxious, depressed? Or perhaps anger, madness?
Humans are social creatures, it is in our genes, we survived and evolved in that way. Having our social life suddenly cut short is a major shock. Fortunately, for several years we’ve had breakthroughs in telecommunications and the internet, thanks to the quick advance in technology to stay virtually connected. But just imagine for a moment you had no access to the internet, how would you feel about the confinement?
Throughout history, millions of people are and have been confined, ever since the civilizations have existed. Those people are forced to live their life in confinement, little freedom in their chamber, and occasionally around the building, still no outside contact. Now that you experienced this lifestyle, what would you turn into after 1 year? 5 years? Or even 10 years? Yes. You would feel despair, anguish, then anger, madness and hate. You would feel hate against others, the society for keeping you this way. After all those years confined with your mind rumbling against society. When you get out, would you truly feel relief? But then, how would you be able to reintegrate society and live a normal life? You would not. You could not. That is why confinement, and forbidden social contact is really bad, emotionally, psychologically and physically.
The above picture shows the prisoners at Izalco prison in San Salvador, El Salvador. Their prisons are densely crowded and in poor conditions. Can you imagine living in such an environment? Those people may have grown in harsh and precarious conditions, leading them to commit crime or do illegal activities, either for money or to find purpose. Especially in South America where crime rates are high and drug dealership activity is common, they lived surrounded by violence, with no trust for the institutions and authority. Putting them in confinement can only exacerbate those behaviors.
In those cells, they will keep on living the same culture of violence they’ve known their entire life and further root their beliefs against the society. What would be the point of their incarceration if they were to be released years later? Their behavior could only worsen.
The mind is malleable. We’ve all seen stories of poor pets poorly treated or abandoned by their previous owners. The animal becomes fearful and scared of humans, perhaps aggressive. However, when well cared and given love, they can find back their trust and become the joyful and faithful pet they were meant to be. Humans are no different. Keep them in a culture of hate and violence, that will destroy their faith in humanity, but show them care and love, they may regain some of their lost humanity.
Every baby is born innocent to the world. It is how society treats them that turns them into the adult they are.
In Finland, their prison system has no lock, no gate. Instead, the inmates are provided with support and tools to educate them and help them transition to a life in civilized society. Not only that makes the inmates happier, but the rate of them committing a crime again is significantly reduced.
The imposed confinement has a significant impact on our elderly communities. In most Western countries driven foremost by productivity and capitalism, elders are seen as expenditure. They are perceived as physically weak, mentally slow and a burden to the system. Left to the care of poorly managed residential and long-term care centres, the pandemic and confinement hit them the most, causing sadly great casualties.
Senior people had a long life experience, carrying knowledge and wisdom that should be valued and shared. Abandoning them to residential centres where they lack stimuli and purpose only accelerate their decline. In Eastern Asia, elders are well respected and remain active with their families and such care centres are uncommon. Would you rather live your final years in a bedchamber abandoned by your children or stay actively involved with them?
Restricting people’s freedom and confining them, leads to consequences. Whether it is behavioral or mental changes, the impact must always be taken into account seriously. Confinement is a simple option. Whether a person, an institution, a government or the society decides the fate of others through confinement, they must consider the side effects, and look for better alternatives. It is a more difficult choice, because more thinking and projections are needed, but isn’t why we evolve to become self-aware and blessed with intelligence?
