Help your child by not sending them away...

The way the program is set up it is emotionally abusive. It was like the staff thought they had to be against us all the time, I remember one time I was told I would recieve a work hour for enjoying a song too much. I am completely serious, she told me that if I did not calm down I would get a work hour. With put downs like that it is very hard to stay positive in this kind of environment. Emotionally I was on edge, not because I was away from home because of how these people treated me. I felt like I was contantly put down. Work hours were given out like crazy, I once recieved four in a row. First one, spinning in circles, second one given a dirty look I didn't give, third one argueing that I didn't give a dirty look, fourth one being hysterical and crying. This place is sick, the way they treat the girls who sttend here is completely unacceptable, it is emotionally abusive. When you arrive you are on level one you can not look at or speak with anyone else on level one. If you do make eye contact or speak you will be put in a 24 hour silence vest. That is excatly what it sounds like, you cannot speak to anyone four a full 24 hours. What kind of punishment is that? The only thing you could say was to ask to use the restroom and even then you couldn't go by yourself. On level one you are not allowed to go to the bathroom by yourself and you had to wait thirty minutes after you ate to use the restroom.

I was in a silence vest for weeks and put on level zero. While there some girls tried to run away and were sexually abused, upon their return they were forced to tell the entire house about it and rather than feeling like some sort of therapy for them it felt like more of a scare tactic for the rest of us. I was given work hours for speaking while on silence which I did not do then given another for lying ( I'm assuming the other girl who told on me was trying to level up) the staff played favorites and the favorites picked on me and the staff almost supported it. Please no one think I am bashing or just disgruntled as I went to two other programs and back them both. I was put in a silence vest and was not allowed to look at or speak to anyone for two weeks. I was locked in a bathroom for hours with nothing but a mattress and when I tried to get out I was slammed on the ground head first by a male staff member which resulted in two black eyes the next day. I was overly medicated and in a somewhat comatose state at one point, I started refusing my medication and was punished. Other girls were allowed beauty nights and movie nights and I was never allowed one instead forced to sit in the kitchen and do schoolwork. I was also on meal restriction where everyone gets their food first and for breakfast lunch and dinner i was given cold beans rice and canned spinach for weeks and you have to eat at a table by yourself, I was never withheld food, however I disagree with any kind of meal restriction as a lot of girls have body issues and eating disorders. I

Never made any friends as a result of this kind of punishment and felt extremely alone and isolated. I left much more depressed and angry then when I arrived.