E.D.P Emotionally Disturbed Persons

"Ring, Ring, Ring....

The piercing sound of a telephone invaded my sleep and startled me back to reality, seconds later i sat up in bed and answered what had to be an urgent call, or it would not be interrupting my afternoon nap. "Hello" silence "HELLO" i repeated, annoyed and believing at this point it had to either be a wrong number or a prank call........"mom' my daughters voice interrupted sounding very small and afraid.

"What happened, Where are you' i questioned, my maternal alarms ringing at this point. "Mom, i kept telling the teacher that my head hurt and she wouldn't listen, so i put my head down on the desk until this crazy boy kicked my chair, so i jumped up and punched him and the teacher got mad and she called the principal who called the police and now they are taking me to a mental hospital". "WHAT" I shrieked" let me speak to someone in charge" I demanded? My daughter did not reply, nor would i speak with her again for several hours. Instead i listened to her shrieks and screams, to her being told to calm down , and her muffled protest as someone may have tried to control her screaming. I listened to her heart wrenching calls over and over, feeling helpless and as much a failure as any parent would feel when their child is crying out for help and they simply could not! Later whilst rushing to her Junior High School i learned that she had been in an altercation and indeed been E.D.P'd. She was taken to a nearby hospital where she was to be evaluated and could be released to me anywhere from 24-48 hours later.

This was unacceptable, i demanded to speak with the Principal, the Guidance Counselors, THE Dean, School Safety, every and anyone whom could explain to me why this was happening to my child, all whilst demanding for them to stop it at once. At my urgency the school Psychologist was contacted [she worked at my daughters school 2x a week} and had a passing relationship with her, this worked in our favor and my daughter was released upon completion of her examination, with a referral to a neighborhood clinic for later on in the week.

For me this situation was very troubling, i had no prior knowledge of an E.D.P or a 5150 as it is called by the NYPD. However this is what i learned..........

General E.D.P's fall into three categories :SHORT TERM- the reactions/ behaviour of someone who's life is in a crisis right now :ie car accident, death in family . LONG TERM - someone experiencing long term and on- going mental health issues : ie schizophrenia, severe depression, bi-polar, ODD etc. CHEMICAL ABUSERS- someone whom is in a chemically induced altered mental state :ie acid, methamphetamine etc. These characteristics are are what is generally observed between both children and adults when a determination is to be made for hospitalization.

However some people/children can simply be in a emotionally maladjusted state, meaning that they are having difficulty coping with personal relationships, a situation that can be addressed with some therapy and counseling sessions versus someone who is emotionally disturbed requiring intensive therapy and or usage of oral medications and mood adjusters. Also teachers/ educators must be mindful that a child's maladjustment is not a wilful or consciously developed condition, moreover accepting that physical complaints associated with this condition are not imaginary...ie: headaches, upset stomachs, hostility and deafness.........

Sounds a lot to me like anxiety,

Had my daughters teachers/care-givers been better trained in identifying children whom are dealing with issues of maladjustment verses someone who is emotionally disturbed it would have saved all the aforementioned alot of unnecessary mental duress, my daughter included.

Let's face it, our teachers have a lot to deal with within the confines of their classrooms, sometimes they are all the structure children receive from addolescense thru to puberty. And with overfull classrooms and very little assistance nine times out of ten, if it's a toss up between removing a child or taking time to figure out their individual needs, OUT HE GOES! Unfortunately it may be your child that the mistake is called in on, for your their sake i hope you are reachable or at least have a fleeting relationship with the psychologist who may or may not work there twice a week.

As for my daughter, for a while she was ashamed to return back to school, because of her experience, and when she did some children picked at and tormented her with cruel and hurtful words that we use as children, but don't know the real meaning, and for that she still sees a psychologist. She refused to go back and i insisted that she return, after all, that is the American way , I go to work and make the donuts and she goes to school to learn!