Back from Vacation

I have been absent as previously mentioned for one week, and have not able to access a computer, which is probably for the best. I truly believe that when I go on vacation, it is not healthy for me to be thinking about psychiatry or any aspect about work at all. As it ended up, I spent much of the time thinking about proper parenting for an overstimulated and often tired four year old little boy. The dynamics of when to say no, when to give in, how much to allow and not allow is never easy to figure out. Things on vacation are a lot different than home, and children do best with a routine. When that is changed, they tend to get worked up by it and test boundaries more than they would at home.

In reality these situations do give a real life example of where a lot of things have gone wrong in my patients lives. Especially in dealing with adolescent patients whose parents never did set limits and are now becoming dangerous. A four year old can hit and throw toys, but is unlikely to do much damage and I am bigger than him. This is not the case for a 17 year old whose outbursts can reach the point of being criminal. The parents all of a sudden try to exercise some control but get a very hostile response, one that they cannot control. So they drop them on our doorsteps and hope for a miracle. It had not happened yet. Nor has a pill that will make one good parents. Sad, and many of these kids end up in the legal system. If they have any hope of getting control of their lives, this is going to be the only place where it is going to happen.

We had a good vacation, but yes, there were a few days where there were a lot of rattled nerves, there was a lot of limit testing, and someone did not get to go on the rides because he was whining all day and was not the agreement. He also had his mini DVD player taken away and the "Toy Story" DVD was confiscated, because we think that it is teaching him some rather aggressive behaviors. Daddy was cranky, Mommy had a headache, it was a bad evening.

The next day we woke up, and the same little boy was a perfect angel. Amazing how a little persistence can make all the difference. He still loves us, too.