School Uses Shock Therapy on Autistic Students: Constructive or Cruel?

by SodaHead News Posted 2012/05/23 13:00:00

Related Topics: judge rotenberg center, shock therapy, Autism, Video, School, Treatment, parents, Student, CNN, soda, Stress, Torture, Disability, Protest, Autistic

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	Constructive	60 votes	11%
	Cruel	486 votes	89%

The Judge Rotenberg Center, a special needs school in Massachusetts, is facing major controversy this week as information about the school's shock therapy program come to light. According to CNN, a student was treated for post traumatic stress disorder after receiving 31 electric shocks in a seven hour period. Officials were apparently trying to hide video footage of the shocking treatment, but was recently required to reveal it.

Other parents say the school is saving lives. One mother claims the shock treatment helped her son immensely, and calls the school a "godsend." Critics aren't so sure. Some call it torture. A group of opponents are even organizing a protest called Occupy JRC, to be held on June 2. It will include a wide range of speakers, from parents to disability advocates. But do you think shock therapy could be constructive?

+25

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Rave 2012/05/23 14:05:40

Cruel

+11
Shock therapy has been known to CAUSE post-traumatic stress disorder in some patients. I feel it is outdated and we have better treatments available these days.
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momma-o... to FatherL... 2012/05/23 21:37:25

Also because they would be held accountable for the known damages they have been doing, it's all about the profit and control.

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NarcolepticGoat 2012/05/23 16:01:30

Cruel

+3
They don't use shock therapy, they use a cattle prod. Pure pain as negative re-enforcent. Not good.

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Wortmore 2012/05/23 15:42:04

Cruel

+3
I have AS (Aspergers Syndrome) and I'm fine…

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Artisan... to Wortmore 2012/05/23 16:24:39

+2
I have PDD and I'm also fine. High five for us being fine!

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Racefish to Wortmore 2012/05/23 17:37:50

The thing about Aspergers and Autism, they cannot be treated with shock tratment.

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das 2012/05/23 15:12:52

Cruel

+2
It's interesting, but I didn't got what it is doing and I'm afraid neither do they exactly know what they are doing. So if they don't know what happens and the students cannot really apporove it they shouldn't do it.

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Christopher Kirchen 2012/05/23 15:02:43

Constructive

If it gets the job done it's not cruel; people paint "cruel" with a broad brush anyway.

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Wortmore to Christo... 2012/05/23 15:43:14

+6
Shock Therapy gives you post tramic stress disorder

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John Tu... to Wortmore 2012/05/23 16:45:21

a slap up the side of the head by a autistic child would give you post traumatic disorder.

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MLU103169 to John Tu... 2012/05/23 17:06:31

+1
That was an ignorant statement.

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Racefish to MLU103169 2012/05/23 17:36:11

So is believing the headline.

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Racefish to Christo... 2012/05/23 17:36:51

But Autism is not PTSD. Whever wrote the post is ignorant.

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Catita 2012/05/23 14:59:13

Cruel

+1
"any of the above" or "other"
however since I did not have any other choice I choose "cruel" don't know much about electric shock as a therapy treatment for autistic children, but the question is if it is not cruel or constructive why the School tried to hide the video?
What other methods are being used in the schools that parents are ignorants off?
Don't the schools need the parents consent to apply any kind of treatment or placement?

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The emotechno prince 2012/05/23 14:41:24

Cruel

+4
this is a method that will just damage and or hurt the child even more and may cause worse damage to the brain wave patterns of the child therfore resulting in possible mental retardation or even death.

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bob h. 2012/05/23 14:36:54

Cruel

+4
That "school" takes delinquent kids from NYC too. It's almost medieval the way they treat them. Every one in a while they get caught going too far, and there's another protest. But they're up in the hills, off the beaten path and look very rustic and peaceful. The whole administration belongs in prison.

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momma-on-the-hit-list 2012/05/23 14:32:51 (edited)

Cruel

+4
Very cruel, very demonic. I just love how the seem to cause the problem and the solution, looks like an ongoing experiment to me. I have 2 fully autistic nephews, 3 of my 5 children have various degrees of it, and NEVER EVER has there been a need for this WHATSOEVER. I would like to "use" shock therapy on those who are administering this, sadly the mother who says this is a "godsend" is messed up way worse then any of these kids. The video says they did this for NOT TAKING OFF HIS COAT???!!!! was he COLD? Or is this just another NAZI shock treatment? I think the video says the later.

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Clare Marie 2012/05/23 14:31:50

Cruel

+3
The person who came up with this idea needs shock theapy.

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flyingseaturtle BN 2012/05/23 14:21:45

Cruel

+1
This is barbaric... At least it isn't a frontal lobatamy.

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momma-o... to flyings... 2012/05/23 14:26:59

+1
Does the same thing with electricity.

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Racefish to momma-o... 2012/05/23 17:35:09

No, it's not. It's a viable treatment.

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momma-o... to Racefish 2012/05/23 21:01:21

Sorry, barbaric lots of "experimenting" already done, I have never had to shock a person into reason, there are many interference that cause much of this behavior, by eliminating the triggers, so many other things can be done. The room alone in this video can set a kid off, if you are not sensitive to these kinds of radio waves you can not understand the vibrational interference it causes. Now add chemical/emotional and your in a world of hurt.

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Kat 2012/05/23 14:13:36

Cruel

They don't even do that in insane asylums anymore do they?
If I caught them doing it to my kid, I know who would be hooked up next and where the the electrodes would be hooked up.
I guess some cases it may help, but a school doing it, hell no. They seem rather wishy washy on the therapeutic benefits on issues other than depression.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

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Rave 2012/05/23 14:05:40

Cruel

+11
Shock therapy has been known to CAUSE post-traumatic stress disorder in some patients. I feel it is outdated and we have better treatments available these days.

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momma-o... to Rave 2012/05/23 14:44:06

It is used to induce MPD for many years.
http://www.examiner.com/artic...
http://www.bibliotecapleyades...

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Racefish to momma-o... 2012/05/23 17:33:36

Stop reading the tabloids and talk to people that have had it done. It's not used for much any more but treating depression. It's given under sedation with very strict controls. PTSD may "sometimes" be treated with it but it's not the normal treatment regimen.

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momma-o... to Racefish 2012/05/23 21:49:41

Tabloids? did you see the video? I don't care if it said it was an evening at the Ritz! I guess this was a depression treatment then??? The kid didn't want to take off his jacket, they give him a NAZI treatment, and laugh about it???? It's so great for depression, never mind the fact that your gut or brain could be lacking nutrients to cause your depression, oh no don't fix those things just zap them into a zombie like the mother reported.

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I don't... to Rave 2012/05/23 22:44:41 (edited)