How do I help my friend be more mature and less selfish?

How to help me friend who's mom emotional abuses her?

• Alright, my friend's family is absolutely horrible to her. Her sister are very mean to her, and her mother is absolutely GOD AWFUL. She puts my friend down all the time, and actually said things like "After the first two kids, I just gave up. I was tired."(My friend is the 3erd) and told her to 'quit feeling sorry for yourself' when My friend asked what she was good at(she was feeling very low, because her sister are great and get praised all the time. Where as my friend is hated). And just all kinds of super horrible things. Also, her mother HATES her Ex husbands wife and bothers my friend when ever she gets back. My friend was 10 when they got divorced, and my friend is upset that she to listen to that at AGE TEN, and deal with it now. I think her mom gets upset when she looks at my friend, because she looks like her dad. My friend is super worried that shes getting screwed up because she considered dating a 19 year old(we are 14) and smoking pot(which she got a little high at a concert once, because of all the smoke) and because she has drank before. She has even started hurting herself- when she gets super upset she scratches her arm until there is a huge spot. Last time she did it was MONTHES ago and there is still a large light brown scar. She says she DOESN'T at ALL want to get her mom is trouble, and that no one in her family get help her(including her dad). How can I help her? Talk to a teacher who is very nice and teaches about emotional/physical/mental abuse, but beg him not to do anything? IDEAS PLEEEASSSE!

• Answer:

  Since your friend is 14 yrs old she can now ask a judge to switch which parent she wants to live with, granted she'll have to tell the judge why she wants to do this, I would greatly encourage her to be 1000% honest if this is the route she wants to take. If the Dad decides to take this task on, he'll need a lawyer but there are lawyers that could this for free, they are called Pro-bono lawyers. It is a good idea to tell your teacher at school but keep in mind that teachers are MANDATED REPORTERS which means they have to report any type of what looks like abuse & this definitely looks like emotional & psychological abuse.