Author Sarah Edwards, Probation Officer: Escaping your Mental Jail: Trauma into Triumph

The shock of visiting her father in prison changed Sarah Edwards' life forever because she chose a career as a Probation Officer to help others caught up in the prison system.

But then she got burnt out and now focuses instead on coaching other professionals to escape the mental jail of judgement and self-recrimination keeping them from success.

It's all in her book  "Success on Probation: A Step-by-Step System to Reform Your Life and Release Yourself from the Mental Jail" where she shares a process to help people break free from their mental prisons and avoid burnout based on her experience as a prison Probation Officer.
She also shares what ecstatic dance and reflective writing mean for herself and those she coaches.

### Key Points:
- **Introduction:**
  - Caryl welcomes Sarah Edwards, talking about her book *Success on Probation* and her journey from trauma to resilience.
 
- **Sarah's Background:**
  - Saw her father taken to jail when she was a teenager.
  - Felt the shock and emotional pain of having to visit her father behind bars.
  - Became interested in understanding crime and rehabilitation.

- **Career Path:**
- Started working as a probation officer in the UK and primarily worked with people involved in the criminal justice system.
  - Focused on individual rehabilitation by directing a change of habits and cognitive-behavioral intervention techniques known as CBT.

- **Key Insights:**
  - The impact and effect of the root causes of crime, including family structure, beliefs, lifestyle, and opportunities.
  - The difficulties of working with stubborn probationers.

But then she hit rock bottom and burnout. One way out was learning the following:

- **Ecstatic Dance:**
  - Sarah learned about ecstatic dance as a way to prevent burnout and rediscover the body.
  - Talks about the transformative journey through free-form dance and how it helps mental health.

- **Reflective Writing:**
  - The importance of journaling and reflective writing as a means of listening to oneself and processing emotions.
  - Explains how this practice supported her in making massive life decisions and living her truth.

- **Writing the Book:**
  - Encouraged by a mentor to write her book during the pandemic.
  - Shares the process of writing and self-publishing *Success on Probation.*
  - Delves into the impact of this book on her career and how it led to a TEDx talk.

### Connect with Sarah Edwards:
- **Book:** *Success on Probation* —[Amazon worldwide]
- **Course:** *Soothe Your Soul* (6 weeks)
- **Community:** No More Burnout (Facebook Community)

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Transcript

Hello, Caryl Westmore here and welcome to another episode of the *Write the Book Inside You* podcast. What is fascinating about my author guest today is how she turned witnessing her father being taken off to prison into a profound life lesson. 

Sarah Edwards, author of *Success on Probation: A Step-by-Step System to Reform Your Life and Release Yourself from the Mental Jail*, shares her journey from the teenage trauma of visiting her father in jail to becoming a probation officer in the UK system, to finding freedom and resilience from burnout herself, and now coaching others to break free from their own mental jails and avoid burnout. Stay tuned for an enlightening conversation filled with her powerful story and her tips on ecstatic dance as a mind-body tool for mental health. You won't want to miss this.

Hello and welcome to the *Write the Book Inside You* podcast. Tips, tools, and interviews for coaches and healers like you who want to write a non-fiction book to boost your visibility, clients, and cash flow while making a difference. I'm your host, Carol Westmore, a multi-published author and energy psychology tapping book coach. Now let's jump into today's episode.

Sarah Edwards is an author, coach, and TEDx speaker from the UK. She has worked as a probation officer, psychology and criminology tutor, and career coach, and has now turned her skills and education to helping women, especially young mums and other career counselors, overcome burnout in their life and careers. Her book, *Success on Probation*, helps readers review their life in terms of releasing themselves from the judgment, self-punishment, and mental jail they can end up in. Welcome, Sarah.

Sarah: Thank you, Caryl. Yeah, thank you for having me on your podcast.

Caryl: Before we continue, what I'd love you to tell us, Sarah, is the pivotal moment in your life that brought you to the work you do, starting out with being a probation officer.

Sarah: So it was when I was about 15, 16, and my parents were going through a separation. I was doing my exams at school. It was a really important moment, and my dad was sent to prison. It was so shocking because where I grew up, I grew up in quite a regular neighborhood, but the neighborhood next to us had a lot of crime. Me and my teenage friends would often hang around there, you know, because you've got bad boys, you know, it is exciting. But I never thought that would happen in my own family. 

I remember the car journey with my mum. I was the only one of three siblings who wanted to visit him. My older sister and younger brother did not want to know. But I wrote to my dad. I've always been the emotional empath of the family, always told it was too much. I always knew deep down he wasn't a bad person. He wasn't a bad person. We grew up going to church. He used to run the youth groups. It was really at odds with who I thought my dad was. He was always there. He raised us. He went to work. In my eyes, he was a good dad.

We went to visit him in prison, and it was just really different. My dad has a positive mindset. From his point of view, he loved it. He got to chat with people. He actually used to visit people in prison as part of his missionary work at church. He got to work. It was a low-security prison, and he was made for all the prison officers. But it was from then that I realized the people that are going to prison are just normal people who have made some kind of mistake or wrong decision.

So from then, that's when my interest was piqued. Why do people end up in prison? Is it their own personal thing? Is it the police system? The justice system? When it came to deciding what I wanted to do at school, I was dead set. I knew I wanted to know why people commit crime. Why did they end up in prison? I ended up doing my dissertation on mothers.

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Now back to today's episode. 

Sarah: You know, loads of people are interested in crime and crime documentaries, but it just made it really real. I think at the time, I didn't really process the impact on me because I was so busy looking outward. That's kind of where it's taken me today. I then went into a job. I didn't know probation officer was a job. When I was studying for psychology and criminology, we had a forensic psychologist who worked in the local prison visit us. I'm an active learner. I learn by real people telling real-life stories, not something abstract in research. It brought it alive for me. I didn't have a placement, but I was keen to get experience and voluntary work. I heard one of my course colleagues had done a placement in probation. 

For me, working with people who have been to prison and helping them is something I want to do. 

Caryl: Can you define exactly what a probation officer does for people all over the world?

Sarah: Some countries call them parole officers, probation officers, community justice officers. We work with people who are in prison and those who are not in prison but have been arrested. They go through the court system, and they either get prison or a community sentence. A probation officer rehabilitates them. We look at behavior change, actively working one-to-one with them, or they might have CBT-based programs.

Caryl: CBT is a method of counseling. Could you define that?

Sarah: CBT is cognitive behavior techniques that look at thoughts, behaviors, and actions of someone. It's like a triangle of why someone commits crimes. For example, if someone commits a robbery, what are their thoughts, actions, beliefs, and how do they interlink? As probation officers, we focus on thoughts, behaviors, and actions, considering childhood experiences and current habits, environment, and beliefs.

Caryl: How does CBT benefit the person? How do you as a probation officer guide them?

Sarah: We have programs like the thinking skills program in the UK. Most people get one-to-one support from a probation officer. For example, I had a 21-year-old in London dealing with drugs and violent offending. We look at his family structure, beliefs, lifestyle, opportunities, education, goals, financial situation, family attitudes towards money, substance misuse, and mental health issues. We work on a structured one-to-one basis to try to change them. Many coaches and therapists know that change is not easy, especially with people on probation who don't want to change. You spend a lot of time building relationships to connect on a human level and plant the seed of change. You might not see the change in the short term, but some people are with you for years, even for life.

Caryl: How did you find ecstatic dance and how did it help you with burnout?

Sarah: I found ecstatic dance at another rock bottom after separating from my partner, quitting my job, trying to grow my business, and raising my two young children. One of my counselors asked what I loved as a child, and I always loved dancing. Ecstatic dance is free-form dance with no structured moves, heavy bass, and it takes you on a journey from grounding sounds to euphoric highs and soothing meditative music. The first time I experienced it, I dropped from my mind into my body. I didn't care who could see me dancing. It felt like clubbing, but I don't drink alcohol anymore. I just felt love and energy, extending my heart and love to everyone. It was a natural high, and I needed more of it. People need more of it.

Caryl: You even recommend it for the prison system. But let's focus on what you mention in your book and women's circles. Ecstatic dance helps women overcome what you overcame, even if their route is different. Is ecstatic dance covered in your book *Success on Probation*?

Sarah: Yes, ecstatic dance is covered. I also recommend reflective writing or journaling. Journaling is listening to yourself, which is essential if you're busy with work and life. Reflective writing helps you connect with your emotions and your body. It's about being still and listening to yourself, asking what your needs and wants are. I combine it with body scan awareness, feeling tension in my body. Reflective writing helped me leave my relationship because I was listening to myself. It's the art of being still.

Caryl: Walking in nature is another recommendation, right?

Sarah: Yes, I have to do it daily now. Walking helps your brain relax and lets you drop into your body. Looking into the horizon and connecting with nature, grounding yourself, whether walking barefoot or not, is healing. Walking can heal depression, as Jung said. 

Caryl: When it came to writing your book, did it come out of your journaling or a need to put your course into something tangible?

Sarah: I'm curious and want to learn from people who are doing life well. I reached out to a successful tutor who suggested writing a book. Initially, I pushed it away, but then I thought, why not? I wrote it in a month during the pandemic. The first step is

 to ask for help. I was average at English in school but didn't let that stop me. I wrote about something close to my heart. I mapped out the plan and couldn't procrastinate. It was self-published through an agency with an editor waiting for my deadline.

Caryl: What's been the reception to your book?

Sarah: It has given me authority. I was interviewed on a TV show in the UK, led to other podcasts, and my TEDx talk in Canada. The book is about releasing yourself from your mental jail, whether in probation or helping people from burnout. It's my life's passion and purpose. There may be other books in the future.

Caryl: Tell people where they can find you and your book.

Sarah: My book is available on Amazon worldwide. It’s written from the perspective of a mum and a probation officer but is applicable to many, including practitioners, therapists, coaches, counselors, and teachers. I have a six-week course called *Soothe Your Soul*. You can find me in my Facebook community, No More Burnout.

Caryl: Thank you so much, Sarah, for enlightening us about your journey and encouraging us to write the book inside us.

Sarah: Thank you so much, Caryl.

Caryl: Thanks for joining me on today's podcast. Want a free gift to inspire you further on your book writing adventure? My free checklist, *Five Book Hook Tips to Kickstart Your Book Writing Journey*, will help you get clarity on the key essentials to make your book a winner. Download it at writethebookinsideyou.com. The link is in the show notes. Until next time, a big virtual hug and keep writing.