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Child health professionals, in the areas of both physical and mental health, are frequently faced with complaints from families about a particular status, namely that of ‘the child outside the limits”. It raises questions about relationships within the family, whether as a parent or a child. This article reflects on the questions raised by this problematic behaviour: how can we understand authority on the one hand, and parenting today on the other? How can we set limits for children? How can we combine ties of attachment and an educational framework? The author discusses some aspects of treatment, noting that individual child therapy, while still relevant, cannot be considered exclusively, at the risk of reinforcing the child’s sense of isolation due to their symptoms. Thus, regardless of the clinician’s epistemology, therapeutic support cannot generally be conceived without actively involving the parents and/or family.