im 15 and wanting to run away

[ccsmod6]

re: Im almost 15 and i cant take it anymore.

Thanks for contacting the National Runaway Switchboard. It sounds like you don’t have the best living arrangement with your mother. It sounds challenging to live with a mother who uses drugs and doesn’t supply with you basic needs. Have you ever discussed living with your fiancé and his family on a more permanent basis with your mother? It seems that your mother has approved of your relationship and engagement. It sounds like you have a great relationship with your fiancé and his mother. Do you think your mother would provide your fiancé’s mother with temporary custody of you? You seem unhappy at home and would like the option of continuing school while living with your fiancé and his family. Are you the only child living at home with your mother? Have you told anyone else about what takes place at home? Have child protective services ever been contacted or involved? If your basic needs (food, clothes, safe and habitable living environment) aren’t being provided, child protective services may consider it neglect. However, you would have to contact them directly to see if they would open a case and that’s only if you want to.

We hope the information provided helps and we look forward to hearing from you. Our hotline is 24/7 and can be reached by calling 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). We have Live Chat and are available 4:30pm to 11:30pm CST 7 days a week. Our services are confidential and anonymous.

~NRS

[Unregistered]

i am a 15 year old guy and i have had enough with my family its broken and i just dont fit

what i want to know is if i run a way where can i go because i dont know anything accurite upon the subject

im very smart and can think for myself but i cant live here any more

where can i go so i can live and not have to ever see my mom and her boyfriend again i just want to live my life and die in peace without them i have made my mind up and i just do not want to have to ever see or talk to them again

im 15 too nd i think and feel the same way cause litterally im not wanted at my the place i stay at cause its any thing but a home to mee

[Unregistered]

hi, i'm 15 and i just now found this website. so i'm 15 and my family is fine just very restrictive and not very understanding and we've never been that close. i would most like to just leave but at my age i cant get housing without a guardians permission.
there's one catch. i really believe in my education and i go to a certain program in schools that practically guarantees my acceptance into any college i would like. so very few schools have this program, probably 1 to 4 in each state. if i cant go to the same school, how do i even apply in a new one without parents?
i am also concerned about where to live because people who will contact my parents are out of the question and the only family i could try to live with live out of my district.
thanks

[ccsmod7]

Re: Im 15 and wanting to run away

Thank you so much for contacting us in regards to your situation. It sounds like you are in a tough spot right now and it has gotten to the point where you have thought about leaving your home. You mentioned some difficulty with your family saying that things are okay at home but they are really restrictive and you are not very close with them. Have you tried to talk with anyone in your family about how you are feeling? Do you think there is anything that would help make living at home a better situation? It sounds like you have thought about leaving but you are concerned about your age as well as how you would continue your schooling, which sounds very important to you. It is difficult because at 15 you would still be considered a minor. In most states the age of majority, when you would be considered an adult, is 18 yrs old. So in most cases if you did decide to leave without your parent/guardians permission they would most likely have the right to make a runaway report. If you did end up leaving do you think your parents would make a report? In most cases a runaway report is considered a status offense and usually if you are picked up by police they would most likely just return you home. This may also make enrolling into school a bit of a difficult situation because as a minor a parent/guardian is usually supposed to enroll you in school. If it was a situation where you said you were homeless or did not have a guardian they may be able to enroll you in school but that also puts you at risk for someone checking to see if there is a runaway report or possibly getting child services involved to try and assist with the situation.

It’s good that you are taking all of these things into consideration before you decide what is going to be your best option. Have you had any other support or been able to talk with anyone else about this? In the end the decision that you make is going to be yours. At the National Runaway Switchboard we are not here to tell you what to do. Our main concern is youth safety. So there is always someone available to provide support, discuss options, and find resources in your area that may be helpful. We are not lawyers here so if you would like any more specific legal information those are certainly resources we would be able to look up for you. If you would like to talk more in depth about your situation you can speak with someone immediately at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). Our crisis hotline is available 24 hours a day. We also have an online chat that is available from 4:30p to 11:30p CST. All of our services are completely confidential and anonymous. Please feel free to reach out to us anytime. Take care.

[Unregistered]

thanks

thank you so much for your help, the thing is i have a very unique situation as to where, under my parents rules, i cant leave the house under any circumstances unless for school. its really killing me because i am an independent woman who has never given them any reason to distrust me. yes they would definitely file a runaway child report because i know that they love me.

if i was to literally just leave one day and i was to give up high school, what are the chances i would get into legal trouble or what are the chances i would be able to find other runaways or a 'family' and a physical home?

i have no problem finding employment.

[ccsmod7]

Re: Thanks

You're welcome! Thanks so much for reaching us back so quickly. It sounds like it’s been a difficult situation being at home and you really want to have some more independence. It sounds like you are concerned about finishing school and having a safe place to stay. If you did decide to leave do you have a safe place that you could live? It would be difficult, even if you had a job and money, to find someone who would rent a place to you at 15 yrs old. As we said before in most states at the age of 18 you would be considered an adult so at that point you wouldn’t have the status of a runaway anymore and most likely would not have any specific legal consequences. How you do think you would stay safe and survive until then if you decided to leave?

Please remember that if you would like to discuss your situation or would like any more specific resources you can reach us anytime at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). You may also chat with us from 4:30p to 11:30p CST. Please reach out to us anytime.

[unknown]

Live on my own

Theproblem ive always had is that i hate my family, i never loved my parents or siblings. I want to be with my gf forever and we plan on leaving together (her mom passed and father wants to go to new mexico) but shes worried about were id go. the link for the shelters dont work, could you give me another link. also im willing to die to be with her, so there is no changing my mind. my parents dont support underage (1 dating so they don't know but i want to leave and be with her, so this is my only option. i just need to know were the shelters are.
i have 200$ and me and gf are both in gifted so finding a job should not be too hard but were only 14.

[ccsmod8]

re: I'm 15 and wanting to run away

Thanks so much for contacting us through our bulletin board. We’re here to support you and are glad that you found us. It sounds like you are really considering leaving your house to be with your girlfriend and you seem to really care about her. You mentioned that your parents don’t support underage dating. Have you talked to them about your thoughts on leaving? How do you think they might react if you did? We’re not here to tell you what to do or to talk you out of your decision, we just want to help you explore all of your options.

You mentioned wanting shelter referrals. If you want information or referrals for shelters and resources in your area, you can call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY (1-800-726-2929) 24 hours a day/7 days a week or visit us through our chat services available 4:30-11:30pm (CST). Everything you share there is confidential and anonymous, and we’d be able to help you come up with other options you have more specific to your situation. Thanks again for reaching out and we hope you’ll contact us again.

-NRS

[Unregistered]

I'm fourteen and wanting to run away..

uhm.. I really don't know how to use this, but I need some help. I just want to leave, I want to get away from it all. my life isn't terrible, but it could be better. I'm trapped inside my house, never able to do much. my parents are too controlling. I feel like I'm stuck. I'm homeschooled, I haven't been around people my age in over two years. I know I'm young and stupid, but I want to get out there.. see the world. I don't have money, I can't get a job, and all I want is freedom -even the slightest bit-. ive been reading over things like this all night and I understand that it will be hard. I'll have to deal with creepers, rapists, and live on the streets. but I feel like its the only way to get out of this place. I know once I get out there, I'll wanna come home; but I still want to go. any advice..?

[ccsmod3]

Re: im 15 and wanting to run away

Hello there,

It sounds like you’ve got a lot on your mind and we’re glad you decided to contact us at the National Runaway Switchboard. We imagine it is hard being at home all the time feeling like your parents are too controlling. What happens when you try talking to them? We are here to listen, provide support, and give any referrals that might help. We can’t tell you what to do, but we are here to go over pros and cons regardless of whether you decide to run away or not.

If you haven’t checked out our website yet, we do have some common questions to consider here: http://www.1800runaway.org/youth/get_help_now/. It sounds like you are seriously considering your safety which is good. If you’d like to continue discussing your situation, you are welcome to contact us directly either by calling 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) or Live Chat (red button at www.1800runaway.org) from 4:30 to 11:30 pm CST. Hopefully that helps a bit and best of luck!

-NRS

[Unregistered]

Undecided

My parents suck its like living with cops. They freak out no matter who im with or anything and once they bring me home (usually around 6 pm) they interrogate me about what i was doing and who i was with. Im 15 and they need to learn to back off. all i want is the freedom to hang out and do what i want. im get good grades and am smart, but they feel like they need to control my entire life. i feel like running away for a while might make them either respect me or give me permanent freedom from them Please help me decide what i should do

[ccsmod10]

RE: Undecided

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out to us during this difficult time in your life. It sounds like your parents are very strict. Have you tried talking to them about your boundaries? Here at the National Runaway Switchboard we are a non-directive hotline that cannot tell you what you should or shouldn’t do. However, we can help you explore options and offer you any resources that would be available.

If you were to run away, where would you go? Do you have somewhere safe to stay? We can help you find shelters in your area if you need. It sounds like you enjoy school and are doing well in it, would you continue to go to school? We can also mediate a conversation between you and your parents if you need a neutral third party to help you.

We are available 24/7 at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) and by live chat www.1800runaway.org from 4:30 pm- 11:30 pm. We are confidential, anonymous and toll free. We look forward to hearing from you and wish you the best of luck!

-NRS

[Unregistered]

My past was the same.

I tryed to runaway before and this site helped me a lot. You can email me at [edited to remove email for privacy] and we can talk about your problems. SInce im not a bot I could understand more.

[Unregistered]

re: My past was the same.

We are so glad that you found the National Runaway Switchboard online and found our resources helpful. Thank you also for reaching out to help another youth in need. Because we are a confidential and anonymous line, we had to remove your email from your original post. We do have crisis email (found on the website right near where you found the bulletin board link). If you are more comfortable communicating via internet, we would encourage you to email or chat with us 4:30-11:30pm CST, and just so you know, we’re real people- not bots! Also, you can always call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY 24 hours a day/7 days a week. We hope to hear from you.

[Unregistered]

IM 15 and I want to run away

My parents treat my like trash and Ive bought things with their money because I was angry with the way they treated me. SO now Ive got my own money and bought things with my own money. THey still hate me for these things. Although im in a family of six I dont get any attention and id like to stay somewhere for a week away from them specifically to think about weather i should go back or not. Im not able to stay on the computer anymore so I cant say any more. Thanks.