I want to move to my grandparents house... Crazy stepmom

[Unregistered]

Hi.... I'm 14 years old and I'm not that happy where I am right now. I have a house, clothes, food, and I am very grateful, but the
way my family has been treating me makes me sad. Years ago, It was my dad, mom, and 3 sisters. My mom cheated on my dad which caused a nasty breakup. They
ended up getting divorced, and then my dad met a new girl on the internet who is now my step mom. I live with my dad and stepmom now full time because my
mother has drinking issues and I cannot see her. Anyways, Now I have to live with them and a step brother and my 3 sisters. My step mom does not treat me or my older sister kindly.
She never talks to us, doesn't give us affection, etc. When we do the dishes and clean she always says we barely do anything. Ever since her and my dad met,
my dad has acted like a completely different person. He doesn't give affection. All he cares about is his college, his wife, his stepson, and his work. He has
time to go to rock concerts with my step mom, but he never has enough time to hang out with his very own children. Sometimes fights break out, and when that happens
not physical abuse happens but emotional abuse does. She calls me a b****, "you have no life, no friends", idiot, stupid. And my dad does NOTHING when that happens.
He just goes along with it. One of my older sisters even left to my grandparents house with my fathers consent because she was sick of it. She is happy now because
my grandparents take good care of her. Also, my little step brother is a pain too. He always follows my little sister, and jumps on her and annoys her. My little sister
is too scared to say stop, because if she does she ends up getting in trouble. Me being the bigger sibling, I tell him to stop. He ends up texting his step mom for
"bullying" and I end up getting trouble by my dad and stepmom. This has ended up to me being not aloud to talk to my little sister. Now my lil sister acts just like
my step brother. It makes me sick. Now all I do is stay in my room to avoid everything. I also have social anxiety, which doesn't help anything one bit. I really
want to move to my grandparents witch my other sister. But whenever I ask my dad he says "absolutely not" and says I shouldn't be with my sister. I've tried talking
to my school counselor about this, and she recommended calling CPS for emotional abuse, etc. But I didn't want a bigger mess, so I said maybe not. She also said maybe not
as well. More fights go on, etc. Such as when my step mom shoved my older sister. I was done with her treating us like this, So I stood up for my sister. I ended up
being told to go downstairs. I still try to contact my counselor but shes never there anymore. I seriously don't know what to do. I feel neglected, and alone. My grandparents
have been trying to convince my dad to let me move there as well. but my dad always says no. I've heard about this thing called emancipation, and the legal age for
colorado is 15. Maybe when I turn 15 I can do that to move to my grandparents, and have a happier, more social life? I'm sick of being stuck in the basement in
my room having to deal with this day by day. Any suggestions?

[ccsmod8]

RE: I want to move to my grandparents house... Crazy stepmom

Hello,

Thanks for reaching out to us at the National Runaway Safeline. It is unfortunate you are in this situation, but it is great you are researching and exploring your options. Hopefully our response will be helpful for your situation.

First of all, we are very sorry you are being treated this way. We hope you know no one deserves to be made feel this way your step-mother is making you feel. Does this happen whenever you do a specific thing, or is it just sporadic? The reason we ask is, is because maybe she is upset at something going on in her life, and she takes it out on you and your siblings. If this is the case, for the time being, just try to avoid her whenever you see her acting different. It might be helpful to try to find things that can keep yourself away from home during those times (after school programs, sports program, study group at a friend’s house, getting involved in your volunteering, etc.).

Also, you asked about emancipation, this is legal mechanism by which a minor is freed from control by his or her parents or guardians, and the parents or guardians are freed from any and all responsibility toward the child. Part of what emancipation consists of is your legal guardian being in consent with it, and in this process the signature of your legal guardian is required. It sounds like he does not want to allow you to leave to your grandparents, so this might not sound like something he would be okay with? You can however, call us and try to explore more options, or see what would work best for yourself. If you call, we can also provide you some legal aid resources, for you to get your questions answered about this process (The reason we cannot provide you with the legal aid resource on here, is because we do not know your location.)

We understand how frustrating being in this situation must be, something very important to get through this is having a strong support system around you. What this means, is having a person (or several) that you trust, and you can talk to them about everything that goes on at home. This could be your best friend, an adult such as your grandparents or any other family member, or like you have already been doing with your school counselor.

We encourage you to contact us at our toll free number which is, 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). We are confidential with everything you decide to talk to us about, so we hope you feel safe calling in. Again, we hope you were able to find this response helpful.

Good luck,
NRS