Hi,

I am afraid I don't know what the IB program is, so I don't know the details. When I was 18 and needed to get out of the house, I started doing house- and pet-sitting. It gave me a "politically correct" way to get out of the house. My parents were okay with me leaving the house for weeks at a time because I had a "job" to take care of somebody else's home, and I was getting paid for it. I would try to get as many jobs as I could so I was out of their home as often as possible. It was a big help to me.

I agree with others that making a plan to leave as soon as possible, whether that means going to college or living on your own, even if it is just renting a room in a house, may be your best bet. You can try calling a hotline for battered women. I was in a very similar situation in the past, living with parents that abused me although legally I was an adult. At least in our area, the battered women's shelters do not assist adult children who are being battered or abused by parents, but they will give advice over the phone. Here, they only assist women who are being battered by their husbands or partners. Maybe they have different policies in different areas though. Still, if you call them, they could give you valuable advice on how to make a plan for how you can leave your parents' home and be safer, and that might be really helpful just to be able to talk about those details with somebody over the phone. It's a big change to make, and you might not be able to make it right now while you are finishing your school program, but you can start planning it now. Just knowing you are making the plans might help you get through the rest of the time until you can go.

Sending you caring thoughts and good wishes....

Take care,
ErinBear