Thelma was first incarcerated at 16 and again at 21. In this episode, she reflects on a childhood shaped by instability, growing up in a home impacted by alcohol and a lack of structure, where she also experienced physical abuse.

Thelma shares that prison was the first place she ever truly felt safe. Inside, she discovered purpose and stability through the dog program, where she helped raise and train dogs. For Thelma, that work became a source of healing, responsibility, and connection. Looking back, she speaks honestly about how she believes her life could have taken a very different and much darker path if she had never entered the prison system—and how unexpected moments of care and purpose changed her sense of survival and self.