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It's tuff to live with a fire setter. We have more then the average number of smoke detectors. I had to get use to an electric stove because he was intrigue by theflames on the gas stove. No matches or lighters for birthday candles or cooking on the grill.
I had to search my son for lighters and matches if we'd been in a store or someone else's house or even to school.
I do think fire setters are very different from other disturbed children. The social worker left information out of my son's file about the fires he set before coming here. I was able to get those records later after an attempted fire.
He's doing better, no fires in 3 years. But will he be able to forget about the thrill he feels and the power of watching the flames destroy? I don't know. Would I take another fire setter? I don't know. I'd have to think pretty hard. My son set his first fire at four and the second the same year. He almost died because he wanted to stay and watch the flames. His older brother saved him. He tried 3 fires here the 4 years he stayed before his 17 months in an RTC. He didn't set any there and none here since his return home this past December.
Although attachment treatment does help treat the origins of the problem, I haven't seen much in the way of treatment for the fire setting itself.
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