behaviour problems

[peg206]

My partners son is 14 yrs old he is a compulsive liar, he steals anything he can get his hands on whether in home or at other people's households or school, he is a bully and aggressive/ destructive. He is in yr 8 at high school can barely read and write and continuously get suspended/expelled from school this has been happening since he was 8. In earlier yrs he lied and stole and bullied but it was thought he would grow out of it unfortunately it's got worse, he used to live with myself and his father but as we had a baby together I deemed it unsafe to have him around our daughter and he could not be trusted and could not follow house rules , so he went to live back with his mother and 2 older sisters age 15 & 17. They have had to install locks on there bedroom doors, there mother has to hide food in a locked box, and he can not be left alone without destroying/stealing etc he can not follow simple house rules and refuses to go to school, when he does he gets expelled. His mother recently tried to punish him with no tv, when she went outside he turned on the tv so they turned off the power, he went outside smashed a front window in the house broke the security door, dented the car and broke the wiper. He also never shows remorse or empathy towards anyone, he has recently stabbed another child at school in the back with a pen and when left at home on to occasions has stood at the front window of his mothers house and masturbated at a elderly lady walking past with her grandchild, it was reported to police, they live directly opposite a primary school. He also started sniffing aerosol cans 2yrs ago.. My partner and his ex wife are at there wits end we have taken him to a pediatrician 1 visit looked at him and he said well he doesn't look like he has ADHD he has been to a school councilor but he doesn't talk... Please help I as a step mother think this boy has serious physiological problems, he also blinks alot???

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

This level of emotional disturbance invites intensive treatment outside the home. He would likely need to be admitted to an inpatient psychiatric facility and then transferred to a residential treatment center.

[peg206]

Thank you so much for your feed back

[IChris]

It is most common that a psych diagnose it, but this may differ and the doctor should be first place to visit. It is difficult to treat, but it exist different interventions (a psychiatrist or psychologist would know more about this), and I find it likely that the prognosis is relative good since he is still young.

[peg206]

Yes I've looked on numerous sites, how is this diagnosed by a doctor ? Do they refer you to a psych ? And how is it treated ?

[IChris]

Sounds like antisocial personality disorder, and he should be careful examined by a doctor and intervention should be applied.