[Celyn]

Hey there and welcome to TeenHelp!

It's really touching that you want to help your friend so much and I understand that it must be really difficult for you, hearing about your friend's life and feeling powerless to do much.

It's quite common for people who have been abused to worry about not being taken seriously if they speak up. If the abuse is still on going, is there a way she can collect evidence? Perhaps record what's going on? At least this way she will have proof and won't have to worry about not being taken seriously. And unfortunately, even well meaning parents, may think that depression and low self-esteem is just a 'teenage phase'. But it's important that your friend reaches out for help and talks to someone that she trusts or who she should be able to trust e.g. a family member she gets on well with, a friend, a teacher, a counsellor etc.

We aren't professionals so we can't say for sure whether it would be possible to be her legal guardian. If your friend isn't safe at home then she should either talk to someone who has a duty to report e.g. a teacher, or she should call 2-1-1 http://www.211.org/ to see if they can offer support. If she feels suicidal then she should go to the nearest ER or talk to a hotline such as crisis text line https://www.crisistextline.org/

It's really good that you have given her a list of CPS numbers and I hope that she takes the next step and reports the abuse. Try not to get too caught up in the situation though. If you don't know her in real life then it can be difficult to know what's really going on. I'm not saying she is attention seeking but you don't want to get caught up in trouble when you only have good intentions of wanting to help. Equally, listening to someone talk about the abuse they are going through as well as supporting them through feeling suicidal, it can take it's toll on you. Make sure you are looking after yourself and getting support for yourself too