Thank you for contacting the National Runaway Safeline. It sounds like you are going through a very difficult and scary time. We are sorry to hear about your family’s situation.
We are legal experts here at NRS so we can’t talk in specifics, but we can speak in generalities. There are many possibilities if you were to return to America and call the police about the abuse you’re experiencing. It is possible that the police would involve the Department of Child and Family Services and they would do an investigation into the abuse. That could result in a number of things happening, including you being removed from your stepfather’s care. It might be helpful for you to start documenting any of the abuse that you can – screenshots of text messages, savings voicemails.
As for supporting yourself in the Philippines, unfortunately the National Runaway Safeline is located in the United States of America (USA). Our knowledge of helpful community based resources and our understanding of youth in crisis related laws is limited to the USA. If you are located in a country outside of the USA, you can use this link to find a youth helpline in or around your country: https://www.childhelplineinternation...pline-network/.
We hope that by reaching out to a local resource, you are able to get the support you need from an organization that understands the laws and circumstances that affect youth in your country.
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I need help but im not sure what to do
Hi, I'm 15 years old and I feel like I am in a dangerous living situation. My stepfather is the abuser of my home and he abuses my sister, mom and I. He takes away our basics rights and he's a very jealous man. He gets jealous whenever I go out with my mom and will call us multiple times to make sure we are where we say we are. He gets mad at us whenever our mom takes us out to eat food and he gets mad when my sister and I want to go to school functions and go out with our friends. He is also physically abusive, the abuse has gotten to the point where my sister, mom and I went on a "vacation" to the Philippines but in reality for fear of my sister and me's lives we stayed behind with our family in the Philippines to ensure our lives. The sad part is that our mom went back to America because he emotionally abused her by saying that if she didn't come that he would kill himself, and burn down our house ( my real dad ashes are there and it's VERY valuable to her). Also, our source of income is only in America because we live on welfare and if my mom was to move back to the Philippines she'd have no income and we'd all starve. My sister and I are thriving on our own with the money we brought here ( our family has abandoned us here because they only stuck around when we had money, but now our money is gone and they are too). Our stepfather sent us a very threatening message last night. We're scared he might harm our mother or possibly kill her knowing he's capable and his background as a serious drug user. We don't know what to do anymore. Shall we return to America in abuse, if so then what? Shall we stay in the Philippines while our mother suffers from abuse there? Were confused/scared because we're running out of time. First question if anyone can answer: What will happen if we call the police, will our mom be taken away from us if she knew about the abuse for many years and the fact she let a past drug user in our house? Will our stepdad actually be arrested? Please answer as soon as possible, because we're losing hope. What will we do if were relying solely on American welfare but it's not safe for us in America? Please any answers soon as possible
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