Zachary Swain

I grew up in Maine in Cape Elizabeth. I have always had difficulties with my Mental Health and fitting in with others. When I was quite young my mother had me evaluated for behavioral illnesses. I was diagnosed with several different mental health disorders and placed on different medications. Unfortunately going through middle school and high school I was up and down. This eventually resulted in self-medicating with drugs and alcohol and subsequent encounters with the judicial system and eventually incarceration. I spent some time in Long Creek and County jail by age 18. Shortly after my release from County Jail I got into an altercation with some other teenagers over marijuana when I was still 18 and in high school. I was sentenced to seven years in prison. I was under treatment with a psychiatrist but my medication regimen was still being adjusted. I was separated from my treating physician and told that I would be evaluated in due time. Multiple problems resulted. In the end I spent most of my seven-year sentence in solitary confinement. I tried to commit suicide on a few occasions. It was truly terrible. But thanks to the help of my parents, my lawyers, the press and my friends, I was finally released in February of 2022. I am now successfully engaged in treatment for my disabilities and live in South Portland where I am raising my young son. I am still adjusting to life outside the prison, but I am very grateful to be alive and to have a chance at a better life.