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Hi there,
Thank you for writing to me about the situation at home. You have been really brave to ask for advice on how to stop telling lies to your parents. I can see how upset and hurt you get when your parents punish you for this. The things your mum says to you are not very nice - and its not okay for her to hurt your feelings like that.
You dont say what kind of things you try to get out of, but I would imagine they are either things you dont like doing very much or things you might get into trouble for. You say that you want to stop telling lies, and one way to do this could be to look at the reasons you lie. Understanding the reasons behind it might help you to talk to someone you trust about how to change that. This might be your parents or it could be another adult you trust or even one of a ChildLine counsellor.
You said your mum is on antidepressants because of you but you are not responsible for this. There are lots of reasons someone might need to take antidepressants and there is no way that your mums mental health is your fault or because of something youve said or done.
Perhaps you could talk to your mum about the reasons you feel the need to tell her white lies. Talk to her about how down you feel when she says nasty things to you, and maybe you can work together on a way for you both to improve the relationship you have with each other. Your mum may be happy that you want to talk about this. You can read more about family relationships here.
In any relationship, it is important to be as honest as you can. You could think about talking this through with a ChildLine counsellor for free by calling 0800 1111. If youd rather talk online then you could try having a 1-2-1 chat. You could also take a look at the ChildLine message boards where other young people who may be going through similar things post messages of support to each other, and share their experiences.
Take care,
Sam
You can talk privately to a counsellor online or call 0800 1111 for free.
You can ask me about anything you want, there's nothing too big or small. I read every single letter but I can only answer a few each week. My replies are published here on my page.