Turning 18 and moving out ASAP

[Guest]

Every day for the past year I've wanted to end my life as I know it, most days by running away but on rare occasions suicide. Recently things became more unstable at home and I've decided I'm going to move out. I turn 18 in just over a month, and I somewhat have my life together. It's not a matter of whether I should move out, it's a matter of getting everything together in time and not forgetting anything I'll need.

I'm enrolled in an online high school, and my brother offered his old laptop for $300, so I'll be able to continue school. I can catch a train to the graduation ceremony. My ACT score is high, my GPA is 3.86, and I've been in Honors and AP everything up until now, so I have a lot of scholarship options, I'll use raise.me to find out exactly what I qualify for. I'll need to stay with a friend in town so I can ride my bike to work, since I won't be able to afford an apartment until I graduate. For other transportation, I'll have to rely on Uber or friends. Thankfully, since I don't have a car, I won't have to pay for car insurance yet.

I currently have $5000 in checking and have a job, $8/hr though only 20 hrs/wk because of school, so I make about $450/mo until I graduate. I'm not sure how long that job will last, the sole proprietor is old and has a bad shoulder, bad knees, and a recurring cough; since we work with heavy stuff, I could be one accident away from unemployment, which worries me a bit. I'll need to make a resume. My income taxes for this year are already taken care of.

I'll be buying a new phone, so my parents can't say I stole my phone and so they don't have my phone number. The only things I'll be taking with me that my parents bought are my 13-year-old backpack, my calculator, some clothes (shirts, socks, and underwear, I bought the rest), and some notebooks currently in use. I know there's some everyday things I'll have to get, which shouldn't be a problem as I have an Amazon Prime membership, so everyday stuff is cheap and delivered free. I'll also be getting all my documents together, like my birth certificate, Social Security card, etc.

The biggest thing I'm worried about is this: how can I get health insurance with prescription drug coverage a) without knowing my home address, and b) right now as a minor? The website I used to check quotes said it couldn't display my options, but carried on normally when I changed my birth year to 1998. If possible, I'd like to deal with that now instead of after I move out. I'm on Vyvanse for ADHD, Lexapro for anxiety, an allergy med, and a topical acne product. With the Lexapro, I have to have checkups every three months, so I'll need health insurance to kick in in about two and a half months. For dental care, I have some coupons for $45 routine exams and X-rays, so if I'm careful with my teeth I should be fine until I can get insurance.

I know I need to get health insurance, make a resume, buy a phone, pack my belongings, and determine where I'm going to live. Is there anything else I'm missing? I really don't want to forget anything important.

[ccsmod7]

Hello there, Thanks for posting on the NRS forum today. We’re very happy to you came to us. It sounds like things are pretty hard at home that you’d be making such thorough plans to leave. We want to commend you on the planning, it looks like you’ve really thought all of this through. A lot of this is difficult to comment on since we’re not legal experts. We really can’t tell you what you should do and we can’t make any speculation about the law. However, since you’re turning 18 in a month, many of these issues will only be a problem temporarily. You’ll soon have access to health care, which as we understand it can be given any address you currently reside at. It might be a risk, but you can wait until you’re an adult to purchase a plan. As far as making a major purchase, one that require giving an address, it sounds like you shouldn’t have any problems doing this if you’re legally an adult. There might be issues surrounding this as a minor, but we don’t know of any offhand. It’s hard to say what you’d plan to purchase that would require you to give your address. If you gave a friend’s address, it might be ok, but would depend on what you’re buying. If you’re very worried about some of these issues and would like to speak to a legal expert, we’d be happy to refer you to one. If you wanted to talk about this plan in more detail, we’re here for that too. If you wanted to give us a call here at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) we’d be happy to talk to you about your plan and make sure you’re going to be safe. It sounds like you are very set on leaving and we’re not here to tell you not to. However considering all these angles is important. One thing to keep in mind when you leave, and leave for good as it sounds, is important paperwork that you might need to get a job (Social Security Card and/or birth certificate). If you wanted to brainstorm with someone here about that, we’re here for this purpose as well. Stay strong, NRS