Hello,
I found my way here after searching for help for my 15 yr old son and am in need of both support and help. My husband and I noticed behavior problems with our son starting in about 3rd grade, namely being disrespectful to those with authority. As the years passed, if he liked a teacher, then things were good (we didnt have many years like that), and if he didnt like them, then he was going to show them who was in control. He mouthed back to them, didnt listen and pretty much did whatever he wanted. He is an intelligent kid, and his report cards always read a smart boy who doesn't apply himself and live up to his potential. I cant tell you the countless phone calls weve received from the principle about his behavior. The principle in elementary school thought that he might suffer from depression so around age 8-9 we took him to a counselor who helped a bit but we didnt feel like he was the right person to help us. We took him to his pediatrician who didnt think he had depression and we naively thought that this was just a phase that he would outgrow.
Now 7 years later, we realize what a mistake we made by not getting him more help. This last year has been hell for our family. In the summer of 2006, we found out that he was using drugs & sneaking out of the house in the middle of the night. We took him to a great counselor but in the end it turned out that his problems were more than she could help us with. So she referred us to a drug program, which we did take him to. At the beginning of last school year, he was constantly skipping classes and was eventually caught coming back to school high. Instead of expelling him, we took a voluntary withdrawal from school for one semester. He then had to attend a special school in the afternoon to help him earn credits and he also attended a drug treatment program. A few weeks after this incident, he was caught joyriding in a car that he stole in the middle of the afternoon from a house a block away from us. When the police pulled him and the other accomplices over, he tried to run. We were referred to county service and were assigned a social worker. This past August, the social worker thought that he had done a good job asked us if we thought we needed her services anymore. At the time he had been doing well so we decided not to continue. Well, one week later he was caught shoplifting and hanging out with a runaway. A week after that he was caught shoplifting again. So back to court once more. Since the start of this school year, he has skipped classes (with good excuses as to why), sneaked out of the house, left home without our permission and was called in as a runaway and tested positive for drugs.
He is currently seeing a counselor and a psychologist, as he was diagnosed with ADD/depression in February of this year. He is currently taking Vyvanse & Lexapro which have helped him concentrate better and helped his mood swings somewhat. Last month, we suggested to the counselor that we thought he had ODD and the counselor agreed. He suggested that we read the book Before Its Too Late, which I did and its as if they were writing the book about our son. Now I am wondering if it really is too late for him. We are tired of his constant lies, manipulative behavior and attitude. My husband and I have come to a point where we think that it is best to send him away to a residential treatment center. We have an appointment with the counselor tomorrow to see what his thoughts are. The only other family member that knows about this is my mother. We are so heartbroken by this that we cannot bring ourselves to tell anyone else, which is why I am here. Any help would be much appreciated!!
I found my way here after searching for help for my 15 yr old son and am in need of both support and help. My husband and I noticed behavior problems with our son starting in about 3rd grade, namely being disrespectful to those with authority. As the years passed, if he liked a teacher, then things were good (we didnt have many years like that), and if he didnt like them, then he was going to show them who was in control. He mouthed back to them, didnt listen and pretty much did whatever he wanted. He is an intelligent kid, and his report cards always read a smart boy who doesn't apply himself and live up to his potential. I cant tell you the countless phone calls weve received from the principle about his behavior. The principle in elementary school thought that he might suffer from depression so around age 8-9 we took him to a counselor who helped a bit but we didnt feel like he was the right person to help us. We took him to his pediatrician who didnt think he had depression and we naively thought that this was just a phase that he would outgrow.
Now 7 years later, we realize what a mistake we made by not getting him more help. This last year has been hell for our family. In the summer of 2006, we found out that he was using drugs & sneaking out of the house in the middle of the night. We took him to a great counselor but in the end it turned out that his problems were more than she could help us with. So she referred us to a drug program, which we did take him to. At the beginning of last school year, he was constantly skipping classes and was eventually caught coming back to school high. Instead of expelling him, we took a voluntary withdrawal from school for one semester. He then had to attend a special school in the afternoon to help him earn credits and he also attended a drug treatment program. A few weeks after this incident, he was caught joyriding in a car that he stole in the middle of the afternoon from a house a block away from us. When the police pulled him and the other accomplices over, he tried to run. We were referred to county service and were assigned a social worker. This past August, the social worker thought that he had done a good job asked us if we thought we needed her services anymore. At the time he had been doing well so we decided not to continue. Well, one week later he was caught shoplifting and hanging out with a runaway. A week after that he was caught shoplifting again. So back to court once more. Since the start of this school year, he has skipped classes (with good excuses as to why), sneaked out of the house, left home without our permission and was called in as a runaway and tested positive for drugs.
He is currently seeing a counselor and a psychologist, as he was diagnosed with ADD/depression in February of this year. He is currently taking Vyvanse & Lexapro which have helped him concentrate better and helped his mood swings somewhat. Last month, we suggested to the counselor that we thought he had ODD and the counselor agreed. He suggested that we read the book Before Its Too Late, which I did and its as if they were writing the book about our son. Now I am wondering if it really is too late for him. We are tired of his constant lies, manipulative behavior and attitude. My husband and I have come to a point where we think that it is best to send him away to a residential treatment center. We have an appointment with the counselor tomorrow to see what his thoughts are. The only other family member that knows about this is my mother. We are so heartbroken by this that we cannot bring ourselves to tell anyone else, which is why I am here. Any help would be much appreciated!!