Listen to the Professionals

This actually has nothing at all to do with Photography. I just felt like bitching for a minute.
My wife is Clinical Supervisor at an outpatient rehab. She deals a lot with young adults (mostly15-21) that have substance abuse problems with alcohol, illegal drugs, prescription pills, etc..And occasionally I hear stories about the parents of these kids. It amazes me how often, the parents refuse to listen to the professionals they are paying to help their child get better. So many parents deny the fact that their child is an addict, or think that certain rules don't apply to their kid." Those rules are just for the really sick kids, not mine"
So here's a word of advice for anyone with a child that is in a rehab center, in-patient or out-patient.
LISTEN TO THE COUNSELORS, they know what they are doing! YOU DO NOT! if you were so damn great, and knew what was best, you wouldn't be in the situation you are in. Listen to what they tell you, do what they tell you. Even if you don't think it will work, DO IT. You might be surprised at the outcome.

I know it has to be scary to be the parent of a child with an addiction. I get that you don't want to believe this is happening to you or your child. I understand you have lost control and you feel like you need to be the one who fixes this. The reality is, you can't, you need help to fix it. Your child has a disease and you need experts in that disease to help make things better. Leave your ego at the door, and let someone else help.

I apologize for the rant, but it's just hard for me to believe how many parents want to fight the rules and go against the grain when they know their child needs help. Oh, and those who don't think their kid needs help....Your kid wouldn't be anywhere near a rehab center if they didn't!

I'll lighten-up on my next post, promise.