LRS Stories:

Danny

Danny had parents whose lives were literally consumed by drugs and alcohol.
At his birth, Danny had to be airlifted to a hospital because of lung problems
related to his mother’s substance abuse. Not once did his parents come to the
hospital to visit him. Upon his return home, Danny suffered extreme neglect.
Void of any cuddling or nurturance, he was left in his crib for most of two
years resulting in, among other things, a flat head….

When he was two, he was placed in foster care—unable to walk or talk, and
had not been toilet trained. Fortunately for Danny, his foster mother was a
speech therapist by profession, and he was able to make rapid progress
because of her patience and instruction.

Eventually, an aunt and uncle expressed an interest in adopting Danny, but
that desire quickly faded as his anger and aggression escalated in their home.
He then went to a “trained” adoptive home where he threatened to kill the
parents, children and pets. They were not able to control his rage, and the
safety of their own family was a real concern.

At the age of six, Danny was brought to Children’s Home Society. He was
very aggressive, violent, socially inept, and could not make friends.

Almost two months passed before Danny began to show signs of accepting
any nurturance. It was nearly a year before Danny’s violent and aggressive
behaviors began to subside. His therapist taught him a game to yell “Stop!”
at himself as he was starting to hit someone. It became an effective
technique to control a behavior that was second nature to him. He expresses
his anger toward his birth parents by drawing pictures of them in jail.

Through the nation-wide adoption link, Dave, a gentleman from a nearby
state, expressed an interest in Danny. The intent unknown to Danny, a visit
was set in which Danny would be the campus “tour guide” for this guest, so
as not to make Danny feel uncomfortable or act any different than usual.
Over the course of acceptance by Danny, family therapy sessions, and
gradually increased visits to Dave’s home, Danny made a very successful
transition into his home with Dave. He also enjoys a close and loving
relationship with Dave’s extended family.

Danny’s therapist notes that in the course of doing a life story and life book
with him, Danny believes he was born at Children’s Home Society. In a
sense, he may be right.