Question on clinical term

nerfherder

Active Member
If you have (or had) to keep a child safe with a door-lock for controlled access while they are in their room, is there a clinical term or phrase for that? If I have to tell anyone, I want to make sure I'm not simply saying "We keep her locked in." There are too many abusive connotations for that, and I want to make sure I have a direct, objective and reasonable way to answer if Kiddo starts babbling about it.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
I can think of non-clinical terms for it - but my mind is blank on clinical.
You are aligning her freedom of movement with her ability to cope.
 
S

Signorina

Guest
Can't think of clinical either--but the words secure, safeguarded, sheltered, protected environment etc come to mind.

You may want to consider a double baby gate, exterior style wrought iron or "storm door" (glass or screen) type for those instances so the the bedroom door can remain open & room in view while your child is secure...unless open visibility defeats the purpose! (No judgment)
 

buddy

New Member
Here we cant do it and trust me, I do think it is needed sometimes. Cps would get involved unless there was a dr involved county plan where behavioral work and analysis showed it was necessary it cant be done. ( makes me crazy sometimes, if you weigh dangers and risks in certain situations, like a child who predates on siblings at night and kills animals or is elsewise violent or runs away etc....vs. not getting out if the house catches fire.....ummm odds for the child hurting others seems much greater)
But anyway people need then to use alarms, and lock up valuables, have video surveillance etc.
I guess I'm saying no matter the term, you could get in trouble even if your reasoning is sound. It could really put your having future guardianship at stake too. I'd make sure of the laws before using locked doors. (Again not judging, just being cautious )
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Some people have locked their child OUT of parts of the house... kitchen, for example (for a variety of reasons). As far as I know, that doesn't cause red flags or issues, but you'll need a US perspective on that. You can lock them OUT of half the house, for that matter - basement, kitchen, your bedroom, etc. Somehow, there's a major difference between "locked in" and "locked out".

In Canada (our laws are different), I've known of elderly parents that had to be restricted to a two-room-no-kitchen suite - locked in, but open enough for communication etc. - and it wasn't a problem, because the person had advanced alzheimers, and would have been "locked in" somehow, no matter where they lived.
 

DaisyFace

Love me...Love me not
We have done both keeping our child "locked in" certain rooms and keeping our child "locked out" of certain rooms over the years...

It is illegal to lock a child in their bedroom.

Knowing that - we were the first people to inform police officers that that was exactly what we were doing and the reasons why - no fancy language or "covering up". If your child needs to be in a "secure facility"....I think you need to be very open about that and tell everyone under the sun. JMHO...
 

slsh

member since 1999
We did this when difficult child was younger (5-6) due to his rages. It was an act of desperation and because we simply didn't know how else to keep him (and us) safe. At some point along the way, when I finally got professionals to really hear what we were dealing with, I mentioned that this was a strategy we had used and I was told that we could've gotten in a lot of trouble with DCFS for it. We always sat outside the door while he was locked in his room, but still... it's a no-no.

Also had the cops called on us once for locking him *out* of the house during a rage when he was older.

I'd really strongly advise you get professional input on this before doing it. Make sure it's documented in psychiatrist/therapist's files that you got input and instruction from a professional. I think this would fall along the same lines as doing restraints - you need to be trained and have the training documented just so that if/when she does mention that "Mommy locks me up", you've got backup.
 

nerfherder

Active Member
Thanks for all your input, a big part of this is I lock her in with me at bedtime, we have our own bathroom, there's water to drink - it's not like she's locked in a bedroom like... some of the horror stories we've all read in the news. Her teachers know this, there's documentation about her not being in touch with reality, her extreme sugar craving, her sneaking out any way she can to steal fruit - and I don't know, but I expect slamming a pound of prunes and its physical effects can't be good for her electrolyte level. People can and do die of diarrhea, just not usually from overdosing on prunes. :)
 

rejectedmom

New Member
My son used to get into things also and also snuck out. We put alarms on the doors that would alert us if he left and put keypad locks on the master bedroom door to keep him out of our things. His siblings were alowed to lock their bedroom doors from the inside also as long as I had a key. He was not allowed to lock his and we changed the doorknob to insure that. Locking them in is a legal quagmire due to safety issues such as a house fire. I empathise with your dilemma. I wished I could have locked my kid in or put a shock collar on him at times. I couldn't even shower or go to the bathroom without a babysitter for him. I urge you to be very careful about researching the laws where you live. There have been cases in the news of parents being separated from their kids, arrested and charged for locking their autistic kids in at night even with a doctor's advice to do it. -RM
 

buddy

New Member
nerfherder:578666 said:
Thanks for all your input, a big part of this is I lock her in with me at bedtime, we have our own bathroom, there's water to drink - it's not like she's locked in a bedroom like... some of the horror stories we've all read in the news. Her teachers know this, there's documentation about her not being in touch with reality, her extreme sugar craving, her sneaking out any way she can to steal fruit - and I don't know, but I expect slamming a pound of prunes and its physical effects can't be good for her electrolyte level. People can and do die of diarrhea, just not usually from overdosing on prunes. :)

I get it, as long as you're always with her, but I'd still make it an official documented county risk management plan. If somethng happened, any stupid little thing, it could only take one cps caseworker to be unreasonable.
 

JJJ

Active Member
If you are in the room WITH her, that is completely different than locking her in a room alone.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Add in the ensuite bathroom... and there IS nothing else either of them would need at night.
But Buddy's advice may still be wise:
I get it, as long as you're always with her, but I'd still make it an official documented county risk management plan. If somethng happened, any stupid little thing, it could only take one cps caseworker to be unreasonable.
 
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