If anyone had asked me where I thought I'd find myself in the year 2022, never in my darkest nightmares would I have described where I find myself now. I'm a chronically ill, queer individual trapped in a toxic home under constant threat of homelessness as a means to manipulate and control me. I have no partner and no prospects, and all of my closest friends live out of state, thus there is no one in direct reach to respect and adhere to any of my wishes. I cannot trust the family I was born into nor can I abide being beholden to them any longer. I am unemployed and unable to find employment which will cover medical insurance to the level I currently require. My sister likes to joke that my job is seeing doctors, and honestly, it feels like the worst internship imaginable. Though I have done more than a salary's worth of work over the last few years, helping to raise other people's children without so much as a thank you or any other kind of validation.

I'm trying to raise money for myself, so I can start preparing to liberate myself. I am hoping to manage a fund that will be at the ready when the tables next turn on me. My therapist advised me against staying with my abusers any longer than strictly necessary and to seek alternate accommodations should the worst occur. This is how I hope to achieve it.

I realize that mine is just another story of which we hear so often these days. But, truly, any amount that anyone would feel compelled to donate would mean legitimate security for me. Would be a step in the right direction toward a freedom I have never known before. It's incredibly scary to think about, I admit. But, knowing that I will be able to fund a much needed separation eventually will do a great deal in helping me to cope with the every day.

Regardless of whether you donate or share this fundraiser, I want to take this moment to thank you for even clicking on and reading this post. It may not seem like much, but even the acknowledgment makes me very thankful that there are people out in the world just like you. I wish you the best day imaginable and all the happiness a body can stand.