Is there ANY program that is genuinely therapeutic?

[Anonymous]

My son, 17, has been diagnosed with Bipolar 2 and currently is stable via medication. He has been in individual therapy and we are going to start family work (again).

He has struggled since early childhood with low self esteem, depression, possible ODD, ADD, passive/aggressive, anger. As I understand it, he is bordering on a diagnosis of personality disorder. The PD is the scariest of all, since only by changing the way he views the world and his place in it can he be saved from this diagnosis and all the unhappiness it brings.  His thinking and way of looking at the world is truly skewed.

I understand that DBT (and CBT) has been extremely effective with adolescents like him. Does anyone know of a program that uses these therapies and not just behavioral modification to achieve compliance?

He is currently attending a dept of ed funded TBS, which in the past I have described as benignly negligent. I have my own guilt for accepting this placement but have done so because of the fear that a different placement might be �overkill�.  I am afraid that if we do not act now, he could lead a very difficult and lonely life.

It seems impossible to cut through the fa�ade and lies if a program is intent on enrolling your child. If anyone has information that a genuine program exists I would really appreciate hearing about it.

I understand that one size does not fit all.
Thanks.

There is no scientific evidence that any therapeutic boarding school is genuinely therapeutic. The US surgeon general, among many others, has made a similar statement expressing concern about the negative social environment that kids are exposed to in these programs.

The only time a reasonable parent could send their child to a therapeutic boarding school is if the child is an immediate danger to themselves or others. And then, the period of time they are there should be the minimum necessary to eliminate that danger.

[hanzomon4]

No, not a TBS...

Send them to an emergency hospital, a place with real doctors, during a crisis.

[Anonymous]

There is no excuse for sending a kid to a therapeutic boarding school. If the kid is in immediate danger to himself or others, she needs to be in a psychiatric hospital.

Ed Cons??? The name Educational Consultant itself is a lie, as is the rest of the stuff they peddle. They have a sales pitch that they have practiced on possibly hundreds of parents before you. They can fool you just like a used car salesperson and with less moral restraint.

[Anonymous]

i went to cedu john dewey academy and work in therapy now-
cedu sucked and john dewey destroyed what was left.

monarch family healing wants to see kids go home. parents and kids do therapy for a week then kids go on a two week expedition to practice their new "skills" all with the intent to go home at the end

[Anonymous]

john dewey..
i came accorss thier site and was shocked by the fact that there is a meeting where the kids decide wether they want to admit a new student..Can you tell me about john dewey, dear?

 yes, cedu......a nightmare, a murderous nightmare

[Anonymous]

i went to cedu john dewey academy and work in therapy now-
cedu sucked and john dewey destroyed what was left.

monarch family healing wants to see kids go home. parents and kids do therapy for a week then kids go on a two week expedition to practice their new "skills" all with the intent to go home at the end

http://www.natsap.org/program_details.asp?id=201

[Anonymous]

The NATSAP page says the minimum stay is 30 days.

And really, does anyone believe what a NATSAP member says?

[Nihilanthic]

No. A program is another name for a cult/pyramid scheme masquerading as a therapeutic institution.

/thread