Hi, I am 17 years old and I am going to tell u about my life. I have grown up without my real dad my whole life. My mom remarried in May of 2012 to a guy who she has been with for 16 years now. I have 6 siblings. My older sister moved out when I was 12. This started everything that happened in my life. When she moved out I ended up with all of her household chores. If I didn’t do them I got into trouble. I’ve endured different types of abuse. I was sexually abused at the age of 11 and 13. My mom and stepdad have abused me physically and mentally filling my head full of lies about my dad’s side of the family. The abuse from my mom and stepdad was always reported but nothing was done about it. I got into a fight with my mom a year ago. I was kicked out of her house and forced to stay with friends and my step sister. I stayed in Missouri with a friend for about 3 days and then came back to Iowa and stayed with my stepsister for a month. Then my mom decided to report me as a runaway and I was forced to live with my real dad. That lasted maybe a couple of months before I was kicked out and was living with my stepsister again. I then decided to move out of my stepsister’s apartment and moved in with some old friends. This is where I was introduced to smoking pot and meth. I used both every day for 3 months. I started a relationship with somebody who also used pot and meth and drank beer every day. I was arrested in April of this year. I spent 13 days in detention and then 102 days in a treatment facility. September 29th I got my tag for being 6 months clean. I participate in Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous. Getting help was the best decision I ever made. I am now a senior in high school and I am straightening my life out and staying away from drugs and alcohol. That is who I am, I am me.