My ten-year-old grandson had to go to court today

The BBQ Pit
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Well, this thread took an unexpected turn.

Part of the problem is that, for my grandson, EVERYTHING is a major crisis. He gets yelled at by his parents from the moment he wakes up in the morning until after he goes to sleep. Everything is a big deal. There are no minor infractions for the poor little guy. As far as school goes, I’m sure he saw it as nothing more than smuggling a small toy to school.

As far as decision-making, kids with ADHD tend to be at least two years behind their peers when it comes to impulse control. My daughter, his mom, also has ADD. She is 32 years old and still has very poor impulse control (not the sort like cheating on her husband and stuff). She has no concept of delayed gratification, much like her son.

So, my reasons for this thread being in the Pit instead of other fora:

  1. My son-in-law is an asshole.
  2. Neither of them act as though they want this ten-year-old around. They treat the other two kids quit differently.
  3. The school overreacted by involving law enforcement in what should have been a school disciplinary matter.
  4. The judge should have laid into the parents for allowing this to happen. (This may have happened and we never heard about it.)
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It’s something of the Boy Who Cried Wolf syndrome. When everything is a crisis, nothing is a crisis.

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Yes, but you can’t tell the parents anything. When this is pointed out to them, they say, “He doesn’t listen when you don’t yell.” Well, he usually listens to me. Yes, he pushes my buttons, too, but someone has to be the adult.