In it she discusses her son's behavior before going to JRC. She says that he engaged in "destructive self abusive aggressive behaviors." She cited examples of running into traffic, cutting himself, eating foreign objects and knocking over furniture." She called him "hyperactive and difficult to control." Her story is very emotional. She is worried for her son's safety. I can imagine that her testimony to many was shocking. How many people listening had a child that behaved that way? How many people were sold on the center then and there because they could not fathom having a child like that? How many people in that room thought about the child? Wondered why he behaved that way, did the things he was doing? Or were they just putting themselves in the mother's position? Forgetting that they were discussing a person at all?
.
.Her son has been at the JRC for thirty two years. Thirty two years-and still he receives aversive therapy in the form of skin shocks. Her defense for this is that it works...because he doesn't do any of those behaviors anymore. He comes home once a month and plays with his toys..they might even order pizza. He goes for walks and is part of the community She says he is happy(!), that the program has been a success, AND YET, goes on to say: "He only gets shocked a few times a week now"..and that is for reaching out and grabbing someone. They shock him for three seconds and he stops the behavior. She says that without the aversive therapy, her son would be "drugged and in a padded room". .Drugged and in a padded room-or alert and shocked with electricity..what is the difference? Why has it become an either/or situation? Because of the mothers experience-her perspective. Her emotional plea for them to not take away the aversives had nothing to do with her son-and everything to do with her. This became not about her son's quality of life, but rather- hers. If the aversives were ruled to be inhumane-what would that make her? What would that say about a person who has allowed this to happen to her child for thirty two years?
He was eleven years old when he entered the center. He has spent the majority of his life hooked up to electrodes. The majority of his life-thirty two years.. Has he received any other form of therapy? From what both Kim and myself have been reading, it seems unlikely. The mother states that the behaviors for which he was sent to the center for are gone-and yet, he is still hooked up to the GED. Still receiving shocks. This is considered success.
.
