Will's Choice: A Suicidal Teen, a Desperate Mother, and a Chronicle of Recovery Book

This book kind of disturbs me. Certainly Gail Griffith writes well, and she makes a wonderful case for the use of antidepressants in young people, which is why I gave the book four stars. (Antidepressants have saved my own life.) Obviously she loves her son and wanted what was best for him.

But I don't understand why Will had to go away to the therapeutic boarding school. It seems very much as if he was sent there for his parents' peace of mind more than anything else -- his mother wrote that she was so terrified that he'd make another suicide attempt that she wouldn't let him be alone in the house or go out with his friends. But his attempt was an impulsive act which he deeply regretted; he said the happiest moment of his whole life was the moment when he woke up alive. And unlike with many other depressed people, his truly was a chemical problem, and his doctors agreed it was a matter of getting him on the right medication -- something that unfortunately took nearly a year. He also didn't have the usual behavior problems that accompany depression (drugs, running away, delinquency etc), so I don't understand why the school was necessary.

I also find it kind of disturbing how dismissive Gail was of Will's opinions and feelings. She put entries from his diary in the book with commentary about how immature they sounded. The fact that he didn't want to go to the boarding school, hated it once he arrived, resented his parents for sending him there, and repeatedly begged to be allowed go home was, according to her, more evidence of immaturity. When he broke the school rules by writing and calling his girlfriend and friends back home, Gail was appalled, and I'm still not sure why. Yes, I suppose he shouldn't have broken the rules, but wishing to remain in touch with one's friends is normal teenage behavior.

Gail said one of the reasons she sent Will to the school was so he could be around other depressed kids and not feel alone, but his girlfriend at home had depression and Gail wanted him to stay away from her for just that reason. Inconsistent, much? At any rate, he stayed at the school for ten months. That's only about half the length of an average student's stay (according to their website), an indication that there wasn't all that much wrong with him. But it's a lifetime for a seventeen-year-old boy.

I'd love to know whether Will, who'd be in his mid-twenties now, thinks whatever he got out of the school was worth the time and trouble and money. Gail wrote that he doesn't like to talk about it. I can see why.