Ridiculous. Of course, the program is working the parent! Not to help!
Kids split programs. Often not because they are "backsliding" but because they are shocked, horrified, frightened and abused!
In fact, splitting to me is often a healthy indicator that the kid has not drank the Kool Aid yet.
The scary thing is that so many kids who have never run away in their lives are willing to risk their personal safety to get out of The Twilight Zone.
I know because I was one of them. I was a total chicken shit wuss, never ran away in my life, but after experiencing the surreal horror of the program I knew I had to split OR: I would become a lobotomized Stepford programmee, who was forced to lie about my personal history under extreme duress and bully, abuse, and exploit others to get ahead in the program. It was the only way to move through the levels.
Was I some kind of hell raising rebel? Nope. Blended in the wall paper, caused no trouble, was not one of the ones lambasted regularly...
When I left the first time, the program lied to my parents, lied to me, and threatened to put me in lock up even though I had never been a danger to others. Ever! They gave my parents THE TYPICAL SPIEL THEY GIVE TO EVERY RUN AWAY's FAMILY and said: don't come up and talk to your kid; your kid will end up deadinsaneorinjailorondrugs if you attempt to withdraw her (none of it true, nor was it true BEFORE the program); lied about drug use to my parents; and basically did everything to protect their interest.
Next time, I planned better. And unlike my Mom, who drank the Kool Aid, my Dad knew something was not kosher when I made it all the way home, safely. He did not send me back--he talked to me. (Thanks, Dad!)
I ran because the program scared me, not because I was a rebel or runaway. I know of many others who ran with mixed results. There is one kid who has never been found. The program doesn't care about this kid, only their own PR.... their bullshit program spin, and lack of efficacy in dealing with the issue when the kid first ran, woke up the father to realizing how completely full of crap the program was. They didn't care about the kid.
I just think its scary that programs will tell parents not to see or talk to their kids after they are caught.... so once again, the program spins the story, often at the expense of the kid.
When will the kid be first?