I want a different family.

[Guest]

Hi, I’m a girl, 15 in August. The problem is my mom. I hate her, she is all of the abusives you can name, emotional, physical,mental,verbal all of the above. The physical abuse doesn’t happen often but it does happen. Unfortunately for me, I am an overweight kid, and I want to be better but I have no support from her. In fact she says stuff that really puts me down. It’s gotten to the point where I would cut myself and cry myself to sleep because of all the hurtful things she says about me. She always cuts my hair to make me ugly. And she doesn’t let me do anything despite how much I always do. I clean the house every single day and I take care of my 6, 7 in August, year old brother. Also my dog, my mom has this stupid and weird vendetta against my chihuahua, she won’t get her trained or get her shots. I honestly believe she wants her to die, so she can just go away. I really want to leave. The only reason I haven’t ran away is because of my friends & my dog, if it wasn’t for them I would’ve ended my life a long time ago. My mom is also biased, she doesn’t even care that my brother is abusive. This may sound dumb considering the fact that I’m older and bigger than him, but he hits me and when I hit him back he runs and tells my mom and she yells at me and hits me with a belt, fearing that, whenever he hits me I can’t do anything about it. And he hits my dog, and pulls on her limbs, I care about my dog so much, so I hit him back and push him away from her, of course that gets me in trouble. And he never does anything to help around the house I have to do everything and he takes credit for it when my mom comes home. And she stupidly believes him. She talks bad about me to all of my family members and says hurtful things. I have sacrificed so much because of her work schedule, I have to pick my brother up from the bus stop so I can’t go to basketball practices or student council meetings or volleyball practices. She never lets me hang out with my friends. I really want to leave but I want to stay here in Indiana because I don’t want to move again, that’s why I haven’t ran away yet. I really believe that if I stay in this house any longer, it will get to the point where I won’t be able to take it anymore and just commit suicide. Please what should I do?

[ccsmod1]

Hey there,

Thanks so much for contacting us, it takes a lot of courage to reach out and share your story. It must be really hard to live in a home with so much tension. You deserve to be treated with respect and live in a home where you feel safe and secure. It sounds like you care a lot about your friends and pet chihuahua and have a big heart - that's so admirable. Running away is a big decision and it can be very stressful to figure out what you want to do.

You mentioned some things that raise concern for your safety and well-being. Absolutely no one deserves to be abused in any way by anyone in your family. If you are at risk of any danger or feeling unsafe, we encourage you to reach out to 911 or seek emergency assistance immediately. If any harm or abuse is happening at home, you have the right to report it. If you feel like this is an option you want to explore, you can go here https://www.in.gov/dcs/2372.htm to find your local Department of Child Services office. We can also help you to file a report if that’s the route you are considering. It may also be a good idea to explore options for staying with another family member or someone you trust as far as transferring custody.

You mentioned that you have previously had thoughts of suicide and have self-harmed in the past. We care a lot about your safety, and we can help you find resources that can help you cope with these feelings. You do not have to face this alone, and there is so much help out there for you. If you are thinking about hurting yourself, the National Suicide Hotline could be a good resource for you. You can check them out at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/, or you can call 1-800-273-8255 for help and support any time.

If you’d like to go over what’s going on in depth, or if you’d like to explore other options that you may have available to you, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY. You can also chat us by clicking on the “CHAT” button on top of our homepage. We’re open 24/7 and here to listen and support you in any way we can.

All the best,
NRS