Valley Fever in Prison
Getting tested while in prison
introduction
Long story short, my son has been at Avenal prison for probably 3 years. He was almost transferred to a Fire Camp at one point but was later denied because he had too much time left to serve so he was pretty much stuck there. In this post, I will share why he chose to take a test for Valley Fever and how it changed things for him. I’m just going to tell you what I know from what my son told me and how it impacted him/us.
You can read more on Valley Fever
understanding valley fever
Sometime after he completed his high school diploma earlier this year, Thank God for that! he was denied the transfer to a Fire Camp; he finally decided to do the Valley Fever Test. What is Valley Fever? That was my question too. Turns out that Valley Fever is brought on by a fungus in the dirt that the inmates are exposed to. If after getting tested, they find it is not in his blood then they can get relocated to a different prison where there is no exposure or the exposure is less. If it is found in his blood then he has to stay there until he is eligible for a transfer after the Parole Board approves his request (but this is not guaranteed). So he’s betting on himself pretty much.
reasons for seeking transfer
Let’s talk about why he would want to move to a different prison, aside from being exposed to Valley Fever. If I put myself in his situation, the obvious would be a change of scenery. Not that there is much to see when you’re incarcerated but, a location change is a change. He’s been at the same location for years so the only different things he gets to see are the people, and even that is not much of a change. There is no variety because everyone has the same schedule unless you have a different program. As someone who gets bored with doing the same thing, I could see why he would want a change. But most importantly for me, it would mean maybe traveling a shorter distance to see him if he gets placed in a closer facility to home.
the outcome
And as of this week, that is exactly what happened. He tested for Valley Fever and came back negative. Because of that, he is now being transferred and we all got lucky that it was a location closer to home and not farther. Our travel time will now be less than half of what we were driving to Avenal so that is exciting. That means that we will most likely be visiting more often. Fingers crossed that we can visit before the end of the year.
connect with me
Have questions about Valley Fever testing in prison or want to share your family's story? Let's connect! You can reach me at questions4ruby@gmail.com or find me on social media.