The Forums › Forums › Ask The Community › Impulsive teen and how to handle acohol, drugs & trouble with the law › Re: Impulsive teen and how to handle acohol, drugs & trouble with the law
It’s always very difficult when the law assumes that everyone over the age of 18 is responsible for him or herself, and cannot be forced to accept treatment for any medical condition unless that medical condition has made the person likely to harm him/herself or others. So you can’t force your son to take his medication, unless things reach a life-or-death crisis, or unless you can get him to sign a power of attorney, specifically stating that he authorizes you to make all medical decisions regarding treatment, on his behalf. If you can get him to sign such authorization, then you can force him to take his medications. But rather than immediately invoking that power, it’s always best to emphasize co-operation—helping him to keep a little journal, documenting which meds and what doses he took, and at what times, and how they made him feel. If he can see that the meds are making him feel better, he’ll be more likely to take them properly. If, however, the journal shows that they aren’t making him feel better, then you can show the journal to his doctor, and adjustments can be made to his meds.
Saffron’s idea makes a lot of sense. By getting your son out of his current environment, and into a place that’s surrounded by nature, you’d be giving him a clean slate (and we all have a great deal of enthusiasm when we start things) and the calming elements of nature—which will also be a bit stimulating, since it’s an unfamiliar environment that needs exploring and adjusting to. Most people benefit from getting back to nature, and I’m sure your son would too. The important thing is to emphasize that you’re not punishing him by sending him away. You’re sending him to a lovely peaceful place that will help him recover. Kind of like a spa.
The alternative would be an institutional environment (like jail or an inpatient psychiatric facility), which would be the worst place for a person with ADD to be sent to. We can’t handle a soulless, rule-bound, concrete environment, where the individual is required to completely submit to the rules of the institution. That’s why so many of us have trouble in school.
The jails are full of people with mental issues, who were sent there because the justice system is based on a “crime & punishment” model. A far more sensible way of dealing with these people would be to have them psychologically assessed and then given proper treatment for any conditions that are diagnosed. However, this is more expensive up-front than just convicting them and tossing them into jail, which is why the jails are so full.
The best thing you can do for your son now is to continue to give him your love and support, and to look into retreat-based facilities for people with ADD and other conditions that cause behavioural problems. You should immediately discuss this with your son’s doctor, and have him/her write a letter “to whom it may concern” documenting your son’s problems and that there is a legitimate medical condition behind them—as well as outlining why the doctor believes that sending your son to jail or a facility for the criminally insane would do more harm than good. By presenting this documentation, and proof that you are seeking an inpatient facility (albeit one that might be considered “alternative”) in addition to medication, you may be able to convince a judge that your son is seeking treatment, and that a punitive approach would be inadvisable.
Bona fortuna!
REPORT ABUSE