“wilderness therapy, where children are forced to hike for miles and live in the wild with a lack of basic hygiene and food”…
Also known as Basic Training.
“Also known as Basic Training.”
Except for one thing, and any of you in the military should know this as I know this. The military does not take everyone. Not everyone can go through basic training so why would you expect that every kid can?
I know. I tried out for the military when I was 18 and I was rejected because of my asthma. I know a kid who was rejected because of something called “flat feet” what ever that is.
These programs try to push every kid into this, lying to parents saying there are doctors on site, there are not, and every year several kids die just like at Diamond ranch academy last week. Mind you that was the second in Utah this year.
Now if you want to send some of these kids to “basic training” then clear them by army recruiting doctors and the send them to an actual army base for six weeks for boot camp with Sargent Carter. Not these fly by night ponzi schemes with rejects from MacDonalds as coaches and no medical staff on sight.
Wilderness experience aka outward bound can do wonders for difficult kids.