What to do what to do

well something just happened in the household. not exactly sure which support group to put this up so i just joined a bunch of em.

well first off my little sister is 14 and for the past week or so we have not been talking or making eye contact or anything. we were dead to each other. cause from a petty fight a while ago. thats not the issue.

today i got home from work and just decided to take a nap and i was awoken but some bickering. didnt really think much of it since our family always nit picks at each other. then i heard someone come to the house, i peeked out the window and saw a cop car. so i eavesdropped to see what was the deal. apparently my little sister gave some guy our step moms phone number. she likes to meet people online via facebook. not meet in person (i hope) but just talk over the phone and maybe even date. theres been problems before were she did something sort of like this before with an older guy that lives three states away. this is a new guy and no one knows where this guy lives or how old he is. well anyway, he sent a few pictures to our step mom of his "junk." my step mom does not like confrontations and i guess she timidly tried asking julia (my sister) about this and she just did not say a word to her. so my step mom went to my dad. my dad does have a temper and of course freaked out about it. not too bad though. julia still refused to say anything. so my dad called the cops. the cop tried talking to julia about it and i dont know if she said anything but as he left my step mom did mention he was a nice guy. so i thought everything was resolved. no more than five minutes later i hear screaming and crying so loud coming from the basement were my sisters room is. i thought they made up and she was laughing. she does have a loud obnoxious laugh. she comes storming upstairs and running outside with my dad close behind. i had no choice but to come out after her. i hugged her and let her cry on my shoulder and guilded her into my room. this is not how i wanted to fix our relationship. her crying just broke my heart. she didnt say much through her tears but she did say my dad kicked her in the stomach and it hurts. she is known for lying and stretching the truth and overdramatizing things so im still unsure how true that is. but my dad does have a history of child abuse. hes never hit her, but when i was younger i would get whipped with a leather belt and choked and hair pulling ect.... so i wouldnt be real surprised if he did kick her. he was trying to take away her phone and i guess things when out of hand. she did calm down now, sort of just passed out on my bed. i am worried about her. we are so much alike so i know whats going through her mind right now. a few months ago she was in the mental health hospital for depression and suicidal thought. i was also hospitalized for attemped suicide when i was around her age. i dont want her to go through that again but she hardly talks to me as it is. i would like to introduce her to this website but now shes probably going to be banned from the internet. i would let her use my computer but frankly i dont trust her. sounds harsh but she has broked things, stolen things, i know shell go through all my information and maybe hack on to my facebook and email and everything. i just need some feedback on what to do now....

I am so sorry for your sister & your current family situation. It breaks my heart when parents use physical violence as "discipline," My dad is one of those parents and it definately made childhood difficult & never helped with behavioral problems. I am sure your dad loves you & your sister but he likely has a bad temper & doesn't have the tools to handle your sister's actions in a positive way. Of course your sister is wrong going online, meeting men, giving phone numbers etc-but she is 14 and young-so we all make dumb mistakes & don't realize how our actions can harm us/or affect the future. I think it is wonderful that you are being a good sister & she definately needs you to be there for her in this time (even if in the past you didn't always get along). I would also recommend calmly talking w/ your parents & suggesting therapy for your sister & family. Please do not be afraid to get others involved in your family problems because often parents need to be taught how to handle their children's negative behavior & it does seem like your sister needs professional help (she might be seeking out male attention bc of self esteem issues-and that is very dangerous to her). I am sure your parents are upset at your sister's actions & just do not know what to do to stop her from doing it anymore. Sadly many parents think by "beating their children" they'll knock some sense into them (my dad was like that & used belts,kicked etc)-but they are only causing more damage to her fragile condition. My heart goes out to your sister & I hope your parents will get her professional help. If you are not able to get through to your parents to get your sister help-consider discussing this problem w/ a trusted teacher or school counselor. The important thing is that you continue to be there for your sister & protect her from getting hurt. I will keep your sister & your family in my thoughts & prayers.

she actually is in therapy and on anti depressents. my parents are divorced and have two completely opposite ways of dealing with her issues. my mom is very passive and tries just talking to her and being her friend about things and frankly is a little too easy on her. my dad just doesnt know how to handle it and flips out. i have tried talking to her and warning her of all the things that can happen. she either denies it or gets angry. i read some stuff on her facebook that did make me worry about her, stuff about her drinking and smoking and what not, so i asked her about it very casually and she got really pissed and blocked me on facebook. i know shes a teen and shell learn from her mistakes but it makes me sad knowing shes out of control. i told her stories about when i was younger and all the mistakes ive made mostly about smoking and drinking... i feel like its almost making the opposite effect on her, like it seems exciting to her. i have been spending all day with her today, im hoping she will start to open up to me more. i even had this great idea, at least i thought it was good, to have a journal between us both that we can just pass back and fourth. i wrote to her in it and she never did anything with it. the only thing i really can do is be available for her but not butt into her life...