No one here will deny that there are kids out there who truly are the result of bad parenting and we are in NO WAY saying that any of us are perfect. With that said though........Those of us that are here have kids (of all ages) who have various and multiple diagnosis's, drug issues, developmental issues, mental health issues, etc. Some of us have spent years trying to find help for their kids in whatever form that may be. We have spent years doing behavior modification in many, many forms be it behavior charts, tough love, counseling, therapy (family and individual), pediatricians, psychiatrists, psychologists, neuropsychs, in home therapists, you name it, someone here has/is/will be doing it. We have advocated for our kids till we are blue in the face, fought with schools over IEP's, 504's, battled against reluctant school districts for services, dealt with truly incompetent professionals, questioned ourselves over and over, shed gallons of tears and endured abuse from our kids that would make your hair turn white. Some of us have even gone as far as fought for and won services not only for their child but for others as well when there was literally nothing in their area for special needs kids. And by special needs, we do mean special needs kids. Autistic, seizure disorders, mental illnesses of all kinds (yes, they do exist in kids), chemical imbalances of the brain, drug addicts, severly traumatized children from foster care. This board is not only a wealth of information and advice for parents such as us but also a Godsend in the way of support. So for someone to come here, to our haven as it were, and use the much heard and much hated words "bad parenting" is, with all due respect, insulting, demeaning and downright ignorant. I apologize if that is offensive to anyone here but it's true. I applaud your decision to further your education and earn your degree however if this is the field you are interested in using your degree for, and "our" kids are the ones you choose to work for, my advice to you is open your mind and look around. Find out the background on these kids before you judge. What you hear from the kids is rarely, if ever, the true version of their lives and why they are where they are. If you continue down your path with that type of complete blind trust in what "your" girls are telling you, you will be in for a very rude awakening at some point along your journey.
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