You are good enough and you don't need to feel like you have to be perfect. No one is perfect. We all make mistakes. You are putting a lot of pressure on yourself to please everyone. I see you are carrying a heavy load for someone your age. Have you tried talking to your brother about sharing the help your mom needs. I am sorry this is happening to you. Depression can make you feel and emptiness inside. It can also cause you to feel like no one cares or cares if you are there. You are showing symptoms of depression, but I am not a doctor. Talk to your mom and let her know what you have been feeling and that you think you need to talk to a therapist or counselor. I hope things improve for you. You can talk to me whenever you want to.

I don't know your whole story but a few things are for sure, you ARE NOT responsible for what your mum des, or what your brother doesn't do. A lot has fallen on your shoulders and it's a burden that isn't supposed to be yours.
Trying to handle things like you are is already admirable, but very risky.
And someone your age should be at school, no matter what happens in your family, staying in the house full of problems 24/7 will just end you. You need smthg else outside of all this mess.
Also trying to be perfect for everyone is alright, but not if it means at the expense of being alright with yourself. Self confidence cannot be found in the approval of others I think.

Best of luck, hope these few words were somehow useful, but know that by handling all of this, you're already 10x stronger / better than most adults I know

"all there is is stress and anger and hate."

Then I would get the hell out of there.

At school I have my social worker. She's amazing to me. Helps me. But my mom doesn't know I talk to someone. A few years ago I went to the doctor and they suggested counselors but my mom wasn't happy with it. She believes that you should hide the feelings. That it doesn't matter how you feel as long as you put on a good face. I can't really go anywhere else though. We lost our car because we couldn't pay for it. That's why I want school. I can finally get away.

Do what's right for you, when the people whose job it is to take care and love you end up hurting you, it hurts, a lot.
But not giving up on trying to get better is important, especially when you're as young as you are.
hiding everything all time works, until it doesn't, and then you just crash.

I am so very sorry that you are in this situation. Your mother should NOT be doing this to you. 16 is not a good age to be isolated emotionally from your family. By all means seek support from friends, but balance it against being a downer friend. This does not mean hiding your issues from them, it means finding a balance point that they can accept while still enjoying your company.

DS is a good place to dump all your feelings! We get it, and have a much higher ability to deal with vents and rants!

Have you asked your brother why he is not helping your mom? He may have reasons, he may have learned her game years ago and is very tired of it.


I am also a member of a group that cares for aging parents (or in my case my aging MIL who lives with my wife and me). We have learned from each other that we need to establish limits for them. In my case I need no emotional or financial support from my MIL, so that puts me in a different position than you. But the limit thing still holds.

One of the first things to do is to not allow your sense of well being to spring from your mother; if she finds that out she may milk you for all the pity she can get and still not thank you for anything.

Limits can be hard, but spend some time thinking about it. For example you may let her know that 4:00 to 5:00 is homework time, 5:00 to 6:00 is dinner / clean up time, and 6:00 to 8:00 is finish homework time. And that she needs to schedule her needs outside those hours. (Obviously this example is off the top of my head and if it reflects your situation it is only luck on my part.)

Keep in mind that you have a lot of years ahead of you, and use your time now to make sure that you make a good future available for you. (Dedicating your life to caring for a mother who never gets enough is a sure fire way to create a bleak future for yourself.)

Gentle hugs, and please know that there is a path that gets you to where you want to be!

I know what your going through I'm the youngest and it seems all my moms health problems fall on me to be by here side always. My older siblings are so useless when it comes to that. It pisses me off and I'm so tired of it. They need to step up and be there for my mother when she needs support when shes feeling ill. It makes no sense whats so ever I'm the youngest the older siblings should be the ones who are there for her not jus me. They think their the only ones that have a life total bs.

I understand cause all this stress triggers my depression and anxiety.

You are extremely stressed out and I completely understand why you'd want to go back to school. I want you to know that you're not alone and that we are ALL here for you. I was wondering that if maybe you were feeling spaced out. like you're there like a movie prop but you're not living. it's like the world is going around you and people are talking but you can't here them. I think seeking to a counselor might be helpful for you to share your situations. I often feel alone as well and my mom is hurt, so I relate to you in that way as well. I think having her talk to her family and friends and having her try to relax and sleep could help you. I also suggest you find your "safe spot" like a book in a corner , or tumblr in your bed under the covers.

I'm just so scared. I've had the same wishes for years and they don't come true. What if things keep getting worse and worse? I know people are here on DS. You care for me. But I still feel alone. I don't know why. Even with my best friends who I consider sisters, I feel alone.