Heart-wrenching but Id love to hear more stories
Similar to Augusta's.
Mostly stories of bouts with teen angst and how it was conquered, or out-grown.
Are there really camps like that?
I was sent away to a place very much like "circle mountain". There were no fences or guards but it was so far in the middle of nowhere that there was very little point to running away. I was forced to yell things at baby pictures of myself (much like the mirror scene), to pound pillows while screaming and many other unorthodox therapeutic exercises. It was supposed to be a 2 year program but I was able to leave after just one year because I turned 18. It was a completely surreal experience. I believe it was helpful but also did some real harm as none of the people in charge were actual mental health professionals. This movie really reminded me of my experience as I too was escorted against my will.
shareThis whole thing horrifies me. I recall ABC's primetime doing a report on such camps. MTV has as well, and besides those exposés and this film, I have never been familar with them. I just feel like they are programs that are too hit-or-miss to be hailed as effective. Some people say they imrpoved afterward, but I wonder how much of it is just the person "growing up."
I certainly would never send any child of mine to such a place if they were having troubles. I just don't see how hard labor, extreme environmental exposures (like being in the mountains), mixed with "expressing feelings" with therapy Is really going to stop a child's rebellion. It really feels like the whole premise is to break down someone so they can be "built back up." These programs admit as much. The difference is they spin it as it being a positive. I feel it's not only unlikely to be effective but actually cruel.
I always think about the health issues that can go with having to be at such a place. The one ABC news program showed thw kids having to pass physicals to be approved to go do such a camp, but I have wondered if some places simply scoop up the kids with no pre-evaluation (as it is depicted in this film). Did you have a physical first? I know some camps have gotten in trouble for pushing even healthy kids to their limits and illness has resulted (even deaths have occurred). To hear you went somewhere that didn't even have real therapists is completely shocking. What a farce.
Even programs that use "safe guidelines" and real counselors disgust me. I just feel there are better ways to help children that are experiencing hard times.
*I take it back, I have seen "Kidnapped for Christ," which is a documentary following a Christian-based "reform" camp. It was so shocking, I didn't even think to lump it in with the kind of place Augusta went to. As much as I am against all such "reform camps" like these, some are far worse than others. Fortunately, the camp featured in KfC was shut down. Sadly, there ar hundreds to thousands of others.
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