I'm E.J., I'm 16, and I'm in foster care. I've been in foster care since January 21st. My siblings and I, Emma (12) and Nick (14), were put into foster care together. I was taken directly from school that day, and placed into the DSS (Department of Social Services) holding room for 5 hours. They said that my sister and I were going to a friend of mine's, but I didn't have any idea where my brother was going. I was scared.
They put me in foster care for a couple of reasons. One of those reasons was that I had a tooth abscess that was causing severe pain, and my parents hadn't had the money (or the motivation) to get me proper tooth care. Another reason was that we (the five of us and some cats) were living in a two bedded Motel 6 room, which quarters had previously been a very run-down Heritage Inn. We hardly ever had enough food, and my parents spent most of their money on cigarettes, weed, and beer. My mom hadn't had a job in 7 years, my dad had been working the same low-wage job, and we lived off of all of the food that fit in the mini-fridge. It had been like that for two and a half years.
When we were put into foster care, I lived with my sister, four other girls, and my foster parents. It was a small house, and everyone was constantly fighting. The home I was put in, while it had been from a friend of mine, was cramped and moody. My brother had been tossed around between three different homes for the next five months, and I had been desperately trying not to fail my year. I had a counselor, who was really no help at all, and my social worker hardly ever visited us.
Now I'm in a different home in Northern Virginia. I'm in what they call the Family Advocacy Services of Virginia. It's like therapy group, only for foster children. It's almost traumatizing what I have to go through when I'm there. My brother was going, but he isn't anymore, and my sister is too young. The children there are violent, horrible, mean, and cruel. They are extremely ignorant, and I feel very sorry for them. The system there is so invasive, I can't have any of my personal freedoms. They don't respect my individuality at all, and they try to view all of the sites that I'm on, policing my every move.
Needless to say, though I wasn't well off with my parents, foster care has been Hell.
