I have a 12 year old son who has had difficulties since the age of 3. He has been in therapy for over 4 years (diagnosed at age 8) and on medications for 3 years.
My son has been challenging to raise, to say the least, but I am to a point where I am out of ideas. I am so frustrated by his behaviors that I am stressed out all the time, I cry myself to sleep, and everynight is just another battle with him.
He has a 504 plan at school, but it doesn't seem to do much good now that he is in middle school and at home he just won't follow any rules at all. He lies all the time to everyone and what's worse is he manipulates us to get his way. He is very intelligent, yet he is flunking his classes because he doesn't want to do the work.
He is still in therapy, but everything the doctor tells us to try backfires. A strick set of consequences and rewards have been all that have worked for him in the past, but they don't work anymore. He doesn't care if he gets a consequence and he doesn't care if he doesn't earn a reward.
I am out of ideas and the doctor isn't helping. I just don't know what to do anymore. I am contemplating sending him away to a military or boarding school and that breaks my heart.
I don't know any other parents who share my issues and no one in my family understands what it is like. They all just tell me I need stronger discipline, can you believe that! My dad even tells me that I just need to beat him to keep him scared of me so he will get it together.
Please help if you can. I would love to find a local support group or someone to talk to so I don't feel so alone in this.
My son has been challenging to raise, to say the least, but I am to a point where I am out of ideas. I am so frustrated by his behaviors that I am stressed out all the time, I cry myself to sleep, and everynight is just another battle with him.
He has a 504 plan at school, but it doesn't seem to do much good now that he is in middle school and at home he just won't follow any rules at all. He lies all the time to everyone and what's worse is he manipulates us to get his way. He is very intelligent, yet he is flunking his classes because he doesn't want to do the work.
He is still in therapy, but everything the doctor tells us to try backfires. A strick set of consequences and rewards have been all that have worked for him in the past, but they don't work anymore. He doesn't care if he gets a consequence and he doesn't care if he doesn't earn a reward.
I am out of ideas and the doctor isn't helping. I just don't know what to do anymore. I am contemplating sending him away to a military or boarding school and that breaks my heart.
I don't know any other parents who share my issues and no one in my family understands what it is like. They all just tell me I need stronger discipline, can you believe that! My dad even tells me that I just need to beat him to keep him scared of me so he will get it together.
Please help if you can. I would love to find a local support group or someone to talk to so I don't feel so alone in this.