Jen Shah Describes Anxiety She Felt as She Faced 'Worst Fear' Reporting to Prison in First Journal Entry

Jen Shah is giving her followers a look at her time in prison, where she is serving 6.5 years after being convicted of wire fraud charges.

On Thursday, Jen's husband, Sharrieff Shah, took to her official Instagram account to share the first entry from her journal, which will document her time in prison at the Bryan Federal Prison Camp in Texas. 

Sharrieff -- affectionately known as Coach -- appeared in a video, almost a month since his wife's surrender, to share why it has taken so long for Jen's followers to hear from her. Coach noted that because all correspondence coming in and out of the federal prison system is screened, it took some time for him to receive Jen's first entry. 

Coach, who has been married to the reality TV star for 29 years, shared that it was difficult for Jen to capture her experience while inside. Jen's husband also read the first entry. 

In a separate post, Jen's words documented the car ride with her husband and their youngest son, Omar, as she reported to prison on Feb. 17. In the excerpt, Jen recounted the moments leading up to her entry inside of the Bryan Federal Prison Camp (FPC). 

"I could not breathe and my hands went numb," she began. "I knew I was having an anxiety attack. I made Coach pull over because our reception was poor while driving and I was not able to FaceTime my oldest baby. We finally connected, I saw his face, and I cried so hard until he reassured me that it would be OK. I didn't think I would make it through today."

Jen added that "my worst fear and the unimaginable was about to happen," as she had to say goodbye to her husband and their 19-year-old son, Omar. 

Jen went on to document the ride up to the facility where they encountered a guard, another officer and the captain and how she went in for one more hug from Omar and her husband before turning herself in.

Jen recounted the moment she had with her husband as she cried while embracing him. "I wanted to remember his embrace," she wrote in part. "His smell, his touch. I held his face in both of my hands. As I looked into his eyes, tears streaming down my face, I told him he is the love of my life and I love him more than anything." 

Jen shared that her son finally cried while hugging her and Coach, which was quickly broken up by an officer giving her instructions. The reality TV star revealed that the officer only allowed her to keep papers that contain her prescriptions, her medicine, eyeglasses and contacts. She was not able to take her contact book, which contained emails and phone numbers that she was not able to memorize. Jen noted that she was not able to take her 18-page release plan, which she previously said was going to help her stay on track while she serves her time. 

Wrapping her journal entry, Jen recalled the last image she had of her husband and son as she walked inside the prison, and summed up the emotions she felt as she began to serve her time.

"I want to run back into my husband's arms because I know he will make this nightmare end," she wrote. "I feel physically sick. I feel like I don't belong here. I thought I could do this but I've decided I can't. I want to go home right now, but I know that is impossible. Please Allah help me, please." 

In 2022, Jen appeared in Manhattan federal court and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing. The second count, conspiracy to commit money laundering, was dropped at the time. The Bravo star was sentenced in January. 

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