Posted by John on July 3, 1999, at 16:20:51
My daughters are unhappy with the custody arrangement requiring them to live with their mother and visit me (we both live in the same town and have a 60/40 split). We have tried for years to get a change in custody but without success. When my oldest turned 16 a few days ago she declared she was not going back to mom. Upon being told that I had to make her go back or face contempt charges, she and her sister (age 13) left in her car and have been gone for 2 days now. The psychologist has diagnosed her as Oppositional Defiant based upon this one incident. My reading indicates that this is a diagnosis that must meet several criteria and be persistent for at least 6 months. The girls have never done anything like this before. The are "A" students, leaders on their majorette and flag corps teams, well behaved, respectful, in other words model kids. The are just fed up with a system that denies them the right to live with their father, whom they consider the "better" parent. Can a diagnosis of this type be made from one episode of in my humble opinion "crying out for help"?
Thanks
poster:John
thread:8209
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/19990628/msgs/8209.html