As parents, we were really at a point (like many families) where we had exhausted what few resources we had available to us. Our son has learning differences but had never been diagnosed on the spectrum. We had always thought wilderness programs were for kids who were out of control, bad behavior, drugs and alcohol. This was not our problem. Our son’s addiction to the internet (inappropriate content in particular) and how it was affecting him was really our problem. This is really difficult to deal with since it isn’t something you talk to people about every day and we found very few specialists that were able to really address it correctly. What he learned on the Internet affected the way he socialized over texting. Then you add in the social problems associated with ASD and it was a mess. We felt so alone and so did he.
At the beginning, PQ was really hard for our son. We felt so fortunate to have such awesome therapists. We were very thankful that our therapist was added on to our son’s team since it was a complex case. The therapist really talked us through so many levels. We really appreciated the healthy living choices and care of the support staff around our son. We appreciated the levels of transition that the kids go through. It was so helpful to receive the pictures and updates weekly, very important, when we are so far away.
PQ assessed our son’s medication and helped with further assessment in a very timely manner. They responded to our questions quickly. The outdoor work and environment was very good for our son. He is happy to be working on things to keep him busy and felt a sense of accomplishment finishing projects. He also learned a lot about the plants, etc., which he enjoyed sharing with us. Our son felt close and safe with his therapist. His therapist’s straightforward attitude worked well with our son. Of course it wasn’t roses all the time, it was excruciating for us at times when our son was struggling. We all questioned at times if this was the right choice. We are all sure now that it was the right choice.
One of the hardest decisions for us was to put our son in a residential therapeutic school following PQ. We wanted him in a certain geographic area and at the least restrictive environment. We hoped for more of a school that goes back to working just with his LD. We credit our son’s therapist for really getting us through this block. The combination of issues that our son had with ASD made it very challenging to find the right placement after PQ. The school we chose has been very good.
Our son has done very well in his therapeutic boarding school. The good news is that our son is going to college. Prior to Pacific Quest, he had lost interest in pursuing education further since learning was so hard. At this point, he has decided to pursue his interest in Hotel Management School again. We are thankful for PQ and look back on it as a very good experience.