Parents in debt – I want to help them

Hello, my name is Chloe and I am 17 years old. My parents have been struggling with bills lately and I would really like to help them out as they are in debt.

My parents have always tried their best to give me and my younger brother the best life we can but since they have been having financial problems, we haven’t been able to go out or do things as a family as things cost money nowadays.

Here’s a bit about me and why I want to help them - So ever since I was young, I have struggled to fit in at the schools I went too, I always felt lonely and felt like no one wanted to be my friend or play with me. I got bullied in primary school and by the time it got to the last year, my mum said that I will find new friends in secondary school.

The first year in secondary school, I really struggled to make friends but I did still make a couple but they weren’t ‘real’ friends. They would talk behind my back and spread rumours about me that weren’t true and up until year 10, my school years had been hell. I made some friends that felt genuine but then it turned into a group of 3 which means someone is going to get left out, that person was always me. We would hang out in a group and boys would come over and start picking on me and throw things at me, I was tripped up on my way to classes and I just felt like there was something wrong with me and I just thought ‘why me?’.

Before the start of year 10 and a couple of weeks onwards, I never looked in the mirror and thought I was ugly or ever focused on my face and picked out flaws that I didn’t like, but ever since one lunch time at school, things weren’t the same. Boys started saying things about my appearance and I know I’m not fat but my friends were skinner then me and some of them made fun of me because of that. They also said things about my face, it got so bad that I started to pick at my face and I couldn’t leave the house until I had even eyebrows and my face was caked in makeup to cover up things I now don’t like myself.

So fast forward to year 11, well the few days I went in. I was so badly bullied at that school and so hurt inside that I didn’t want to be there anymore, my ‘friends’ didn’t care about me, they hardly noticed I was gone. I became a recluse, I didn’t want to leave the house or my bedroom, I would sleep all day and eat little or eat loads and sleep it off. So this is where the problems get worse, my mum took me to see a private doctor to see what was wrong because I wasn’t myself anymore. She knew I had OCD and some anger problems but not this, the doctor diagnosed me with: Chronic anxiety, depression, body dysmorphia, OCD and some anger problems. I had to be given medication straight away because I was on the edge of wanting to die, I felt like there was no hope left for me. My parents fought so hard to help me and get me the best help I could get because they didn’t want to see their daughter in pain anymore. It has affected my family very badly and even my mum has to take medication because of how stressed she gets over my problems, she gets depressed and has outbursts of tears every now and then.

I just want to help them get back on their feet, I want to help them see that there is hope and how grateful I am for everything they have done for me and my brother

Thank you so much for reading this to the end, I know that there are still people in this world who care and want to help.