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Miracle Creek


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Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

Created: 04/16/20

Replies: 14

Posted Apr. 16, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
davinamw

Join Date: 10/15/10

Posts: 3442

Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

Elizabeth's son was doing considerably better than his peers, yet Elizabeth kept exploring additional treatments for him. Why do you suppose this was? Do you think she should have stopped any or all of these therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?


Posted Apr. 18, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
rebeccar

Join Date: 03/13/12

Posts: 548

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

She was cruel in many ways- physical and mental. She screamed at her child when she was simply frustrated, made him endlessly repeat phrases as if he were in some death camp re-education program. And do we even need to discuss whether or not it is cruel to make a child drink bleach? I wasn't sorry to see her go, although it is a shame that she was a scapegoat for the deaths.


Posted Apr. 18, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
carolc

Join Date: 02/03/20

Posts: 13

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

As a mother of 4 and a grandmother of 6, I understand Elizabeth's motivation to do whatever she could to help her son, but I also believe that she went overboard. Maybe she felt guilty, or wanted to be the better parent, and tried everything she heard of or read about to make Henry "normal". I don't think she thought of herself as cruel, but when it was pointed out to her that her behavior was detrimental to her son, she began rethinking things. Then, when Henry died in the explosion, she second-guessed herself about everything she had done to and for him and finally committed suicide. I was sorry that she died, but I understand her motivation.


Posted Apr. 19, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
gaylamath

Join Date: 02/11/20

Posts: 39

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

I definitely agree that she went overboard, she was obsessive in trying to "cure" her son. All parents want the best for their children but some take it too far. Even though she wasn't the cause of the explosion she became the scapegoat for it and she was an "easy" scapegoat because of her abusive behavior with her son. I think she had a moment of clarity but by then it was too late.


Posted Apr. 19, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Maggie

Join Date: 01/01/16

Posts: 434

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

She was obsessed with Henry’s health. Even though he was doing so well, she had his entire life been working on how to get him better. It broke my heart that the last day she had realized her mistakes and was going to cancel all his different appointments. If she had only stayed home and had the delightful dinner she had planned for the two of them he would not have died. But because of her obsession with the protesters she had to go one more time.
I think she was an abusive parent, the pinching when he was so young, the yelling, being impatient and all the strange treatments.


Posted Apr. 20, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Borntoread

Join Date: 09/04/18

Posts: 38

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

I do think that Elizabeth went overboard in having so many treatments for Henry, but she finally realized that she was overdoing it and was planning to change her ways.
I think that at times she was abusive to her son, but only on some occasions when she was so tired and frustrated that she lost control of herself. Elizabeth is shown as the type of person who is very hard on herself and hard on people in her family. She is portrayed as a high-performing, somewhat obsessive-compulsive person.


Posted Apr. 20, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
dorinned

Join Date: 10/13/14

Posts: 176

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

I believe Elizabeth wanted so badly to give Henry a chance at a life that she did not perceive him capable of having that she went overboard on all the therapy classes and treatments. She was an overachiever with an underachieving son - the two mixed like oil and water. She couldn't stand that he couldn't improve to her standards and so she punished him physically and mentally. She was abusive in her cruelty, not in her desire to give him every opportunity to improve physically and mentally.


Posted Apr. 20, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
sylviaann

Join Date: 01/14/18

Posts: 66

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

In my opinion, Elizabeth was obsessive when it came to her son's therapies and treatments. On one hand, I understand she wanted to give him a better life however she went overboard. She punished Henry both physically and mentally.


Posted Apr. 21, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
darylb

Join Date: 06/23/13

Posts: 142

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

Although Henry’s autism improved with all her treatments, she was obsessed with trying any and every treatment that she found. I don’t think trying the different treatments was abusive by itself, but her behavior towards Henry was abusive. Not only the physical abuse but also the way she talked to him was emotionally abusive


Posted Apr. 21, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
rebeccak

Join Date: 05/26/12

Posts: 78

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

I thought Elizabeth definitely showed serious signs of Munchausen by Proxy. It's one thing to try experimental treatments, but it's something else entirely to try those treatments without being under the care/supervision of a child's pediatrician. And for her son to have been diagnosed and then "cured" of autism means to me that he didn't really have it in the first place. I can't remember for sure, but I don't think there was ever proof that he had autism in the first place. We saw Kitt's appointment with the doctor who told her about the autism diagnosis of her child, but Elizabeth was just there at the same time. I don't think her child's diagnosis was definitive.


Posted May. 02, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
loisb

Join Date: 01/22/19

Posts: 9

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

It felt wrong after he was diagnosed as no longer having Autism but I think until you yourself are in that position as a mother you don’t really know what you would do for your child to be “normal” and be liked by other children.


Posted May. 07, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
linz

Join Date: 08/12/15

Posts: 167

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

I find it hard to believe that her close friends and relatives did not confront her about these "therapies"long before she went so far off course. What was her ex-husband doing while this was going on? Where were the grandparents? Where were his teachers? She did not do this in a vacuum. Why did no one get her help? She was obsessed with making her son "normal" but sometimes that comes from a place where others treat you and your child as "weird" and stay away. Maybe we should at be looking at ourselves and how we treat those around us who are different.


Posted May. 10, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
joannev

Join Date: 04/14/11

Posts: 68

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

I have not completed the book as yet, but her character in my opinion has more issues than her son. He seems to be fairly high functioning and her obsessive behavior and endless therapies, appointments, etc. are detrimental to both of them. I kept wanting to yell "relax, get over yourself".....however, I don't believe she is guilty of setting the fire!


Posted May. 12, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
vickys

Join Date: 04/21/11

Posts: 70

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

Yes Elizabeth was abusive to her son, physically and emotionally. She inflicted harmful and dubious treatments and belittled and yelled at him. And Elizabeth did not have the support she needed to effectively deal with her needs as well as those of her son.


Posted May. 29, 2020 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
TLVZ721

Join Date: 03/26/18

Posts: 21

RE: Do you think Elizabeth should have stopped any or all of the therapies? Do you agree with the prosecution, that she was an abusive parent, either because of the treatments or the impatience she showed toward her son?

While we can all say one way or another what we might have done in another parent’s shoes, until we live it for ourselves, it’s only speculation and conjecture. Parents of special needs children are under unimaginable pressure from all angles on a daily basis. I believe most try to do their level best for their child given the information they have available to them. Playing devil’s advocate, there is absolutely a small faction of parents who are actually abusive or use their child’s condition for their own attention or gain. I can’t say with one hundred percent certainty that Elizabeth belonged in the latter group of parents.


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