Attachments: Three Wishes

Abstract

As a child and adolescent psychiatrist over the past 30 years, I have asked children and adolescents at the end of a diagnostic evaluation what are their three wishes. Why do I ask children and adolescents about their wishes? It enables me to understand their desires and to further recognize and appreciate their concerns. There are some children and teenagers who, during an evaluation, deny that they have any problems, but when asked about their wishes state they wish they weren't born or wished they had gone through with their plan to commit suicide.