Author Archives: Toni Roma

When the ex-Wimbledon tennis champion Boris Becker found himself in an English prison for tax evasion, he was asked to teach Stoicism to other inmates despite what he considered his bad English. Whether he did or not I don’t know, but it reminded me how simple and helpful Stoic ideas can be for people in […]

I believe that addiction is not a weakness of character or lack of willpower or absence of moral fiber, as society likes to portray it. It is not a choice. It is a response to several adverse factors over which we have far less control than is generally believed. Unfortunately, society treats addicts as scum. […]

It is impossible to be in prison and not feel sorry for yourself. We have far too much time to overthink and draw incorrect conclusions. Why me you tell yourself, there are far worse folk running around free outside doing much worse things than I could ever dream up. Hard cheese. Life is unfair. The […]

All of us will be aware of the importance of doing regular exercise in prison, and the health risks of not doing any at all. Motivation is the key factor, but it can be devilishly difficult to find any if you are  depressed, suffering from an ongoing illness, or debilitated in any way which could […]

When I entered prison, I did not imagine being here 7 years later, or still alive. People talk about how it feels to hit rock bottom but this was a dimension below even that, like Orpheus in the underworld. I owe part of my survival to the amazing support I have received from Prisoners Abroad […]

Extreme stress is a major part of the lives of all of us in prison. Unlike outside, we cannot walk away from unpleasant people and situations. Getting ill in prison is miserable enough, but with a mental health issue, life can feel totally pointless. You can easily imagine never being able to get better – […]