Recently left abusive home and now having roof-over-head troubles.

[Guest]

For a very, very, very rough summary:

I had to drop out of school in the first half of my junior year due to health issues. I scheduled one test and my dad "forgot" -- he has a history of forgetting everything that is important to me such as doctor appointments, then spins it around and blames it on me for not reminding him despite him saying he was going to put it on his calendar and such. This meant I was able to get to the testing center but not back; when I expressed concern and pointed out that if I was sitting outside for two hours, they would likely call the police. His response was to flip out ( he's previously threatened to kill me, restricted my access to the bathroom and for food, so on and so forth; before you ask, yes, I reported him and it led to nothing ) by stating he was going to destroy my possessions, kill the animals by throwing them outside, and kick me out. When he left for work, I grabbed what I could and fled to the house I'm staying at now.

For the past month and a half, I was told that I needed to leave around the second week of August. Yesterday, I was told that I needed to leave by the first. You can imagine the dent this put in my plans. I turn 18 relatively soon and am going to apply for Job Corps, but that's two months of having nowhere to go. I did try to set up places; I initially tried to move into an apartment with someone but that person canceled on me very recently and I tried to become a room mate with another but that fell through.

I have no idea of what I'm supposed to do or where I'm supposed to go. I have valuables that I can't take with me into shelters and I don't know where I could store them. I turn 18 so soon, it feels like a waste reporting my father, even moreso with the past failure.

Please, if you can, help me.

[ccsmod15]

Hello,

Thanks for reaching out to us. We’re so sorry to hear that things at home got so bad. It sounds like you’ve done a really great job of keeping yourself safe, but finding a place to stay has been challenging. In your message, you mention having previous arrangements for places to move into, but having those fall through. Perhaps it’s possible to speak with them about letting you stay for the 2 weeks you need, as opposed to moving in formally. If that isn’t an option, perhaps you can speak with them about storing your valuables until you’re able to sign up for Job Corps. If you were looking into renting and you have a flow of income, renting a small storage locker might also be an option.

If you’d like to speak with us more at length about your situation, or anything else, know that we’re here to support you. We won’t tell you what to do, but we will do our best to help you stay as safe as possible. We’re available 24/7 via phone at 1.800.RUNAWAY (786.2929) as well as via chat from 4:30pm – 11:30pm CST. We’re here to listen, here to help. Stay safe.

-NRS