Wit's End: Advice and Resources for Saving Your Out-of-Control Teen Paperback – January 1, 2008

This was an excellent book relating to the subject of teen-agers who are driving their parents or caretakers to the brink. It was very helpful to a couple struggling with a very troubled teenager ( I gave the book to them). I would recommend this book to anyone having trouble with a wayward child.

Worth the short time it takes to read but not exactly the all encompassing repair manual for teenagers I expected. The book is very specifically about teenagers and resident care facilities, IMO. If you are considering that for a child, then this is your book. If you are just having trouble with your teen and not ready to ship them away, then there is little to see here.

Good read, especially the beginning. Falls a little flat in the second half. It might give parents some guidance if they've already made up their minds to send their child away to a boarding school. It doesn't really offer much else.

This book has been a really good tool to help me clarify some doubts that I had about boarding schools. It is a real story about people like you and me. It has been so helpful. Thanks for sharing part of your life with others.

Old book

I'm sure all parents can relate-one of the most trying times in life is when your child hits the teenage years. An era where you go from "hero" to "zero" since your precious bundle has discovered there is more to life than you, your ideals, or your family. These are commonplace experiences that make instant fodder for sermon illustrations and late-night comedy episodes. A commensurate increase in use of headache medication can be measured in family medicine cabinets everywhere.Unfortunately, not all ills can be solved with medication. Sometimes, in spite of your best efforts, teenagers end up in places you would have never imagined. Sneaking out, drugs, sexuality: the travesties that accompany wanting to live life without regulation cause many sleepless nights.Any parent who has been there can relate. I know I can...I lived it personally. I had to make the tough decision to have a child put into residential placement for awhile.There are times when you feel as if no one understands what you are dealing with. Conversations with family and colleagues results in furrowed brows that seem to say, "What's wrong with you? Can't you control your kid?" Tears well up inside because you feel the answer should be, "Apparently...I can't."Sue Scheff has written a marvelous work in Wit's End. The title adequately describes the frustration that parents in this circumstance face and the feelings they deal with. Wit's End demonstrates the dilemma that Sue endured with her daughter-but more importantly, it provides tools to help the struggling parent who is considering residential therapy. Her suggestions are not "pie in the sky" wishful thinking as her experiences actually resulted in her founding Parents' Universal Resources Experts, Inc (P.U.R.E.) to help families in turmoil.I had occasion to correspond with Ms. Scheff before this book was published. If you are engaged in just such a dilemma this book is written for you.Armchair Interview agrees.

A great resource for parents who are trying to manage the seemingly unmanageable process of their child's addiction. The book provides a thorough overlay of the recovery landscape. A worthwhile read.