Help me move out of an abusive household.

thomas sullivan Start Date: Jul 29, 2023 - End Date: Jan 28, 2024
  • Kansas City, KS, United States of America

My Travel Story

by: thomas sullivan Start Date: Jul 29, 2023 - End Date: Jan 28, 2024
Hello, I'm 17 and living in my grandparents basement. It is a hostile environment, they are hoarders, it has caused an extreme pest infestation . Including wood rats in the basement ceiling and attic, multiple species of roaches, spiders, mosquitos, bees that swarm the basement lights and die inside, fleas from the cat, and many flies. The majority of the pests reside in the basement where I am. They won't let me do a bug bomb and won't get an exterminator. I don't feel safe most days down here and suffer from mental illness. I have Schizophrenia, ADHD, and level one ASD. Of course this comes with bad depression and anxiety, with the addition of the pest it has made it harder than it already was to do basic things for myself and be healthy. I have at least a dozen insects or spiders on me in bed every night. But I feel them on me when they are not there, I cannot tell if the noise the rats make is real most of the time. You can see in my pictures where they have eaten through the ceiling or caused the tile to collapse. I know when I have stayed in other places it is easier for me to function. So I know this move could change my life.

My grandparents have verbally abused me for years and will get physical with me on occasion. They will not help me with anything…i don't even eat more than a PB&J most days unless i dont have those ingredients. Then I can't eat. And if i did have food available to me they keep all the dishes dirty and just eat out everyday, will not offer to get me anything not even a drink most days. I’ve cleaned this house more times than i can remember and done so much to attempt to keep it clean but it's always back to being a mess in a week. The bottom of the basement walls are eaten through with mold and I can move them slightly. It's that bad. I just tried to clean again and they told me I needed to find a place to live if I didn't like it how it was. I wish to move to Kansas with my Aunt Christie. She has been the biggest help this past year but with the aftermath of covid she cannot afford to help me relocate. A month after my 16th birthday I got my first job and have been working full time ever since. While I do have my driving permit I have not been able to afford a car, I even had to learn how to drive from a close friend my grandparents refused to teach me. I'm lucky enough to have managers willing to take me home most days but it is a struggle to get to work still, but I have managed and always been punctual with my jobs. But even now it's a struggle to save any money, my brother has stolen hundreds from me and admits to it and to continually doing it if he can find it. I would be extremely grateful for anything anybody has to offer me. It would mean everything to me to get out of this place. I must leave right when I turn 18 and if I cannot make this move then I will have no other place to go. Please anything at all would be life changing for me.

Thank you if you have read, I appreciate the time!
  • Kansas City, KS, United States of America