Abandoing your kid under the guise of "tough love" is abuse in itself. These parents obeyed a stupid "contract" not their duty and obligation as a parent.
Who sends their kid to Mexico or Jamaica and doesn't talk to their kid or see them for months? WHO?
An abusive parent, that's who. No other explanation.
This is child abandonment.
BULLSHIT! A family sometimes
needs to undergo a period of separation from the druggie in order to break negative patterns of behavior -- the parents can often become what we in the profession refer to as "enablers" therefore the druggie must be extricated from that environment for a while. Although I would recommend SIBS over a WWASP program anyday (Who wants their druggie kid to have to get Straight by a bunch of ganja-smoking jamaicans, anyway??) I adhere to their basic philosophy of tough love.