15 year old who wants to leave a household

[Guest]

Hi, I'm from New york, but I want to leave a household that I don't feel safe in. I hide in my room everyday from my parents, but physical touch from them is forced. In effect of hiding, there's always a dish and so they yell at me instead of asking why. They yell at me most of the time, tell me to either eat more or less. If I'm in online school they come in to yell at me and slam my door if I get upset at them for entering without knocking. They know I'm suicidal and cut myself but they act like its a phase. I have written various letters that I discarded, and in return i know it caused me to want attention that makes them call me an attention seeker. Which in reality its just because I never had it as a kid. I'm scared that eventually one will hurt me. They degrade and yell at me, and put up a false front in front of people pretending to be concerned.

[ccsmod15]

Thank you for reaching out to us today. We know it can be difficult to do and take a lot of courage. We are so sorry to hear that you are living in a household you do not feel safe in. No one deserves to feel unsafe or scared.

You mention you are suicidal and cut yourself. Our first priority here at NRS is that you stay safe. If you are ever feeling suicidal, please feel free to reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255. You should not be going through this alone.

In terms of leaving home, it is not illegal to run away. However, if you do leave, your parents may decide to file a runaway report to the police. In this case, the police would most likely go looking for you and if they find you, bring you back home. Runaway policies and police action depend on the police in your local area and if you want to find out more information, you can call your local police’s non-emergency hotline and ask confidential questions about their runaway policies.

You mention you don’t feel safe at home and are scared that someone will eventually hurt you. If you do feel like leaving home is the best option for you to feel safe, we want to make sure you have a safe place to go. One option to look into is homelessshelterdirectory.org. You can enter your city and state and it will show the shelters in your area.

Lastly, you are more than welcome to reach out to us to talk about your situation more in depth or get access to some other resources. We are available 24/7 at can be reached through livechat at 1800runaway.org or over the phone at 1-800-RUNAWAY(786-2929).

Best of luck and stay strong,
NRS