Krystal, 14, has had an extremely difficult year

Krystal was referred to Amanecer by the LA County Department of Child and Family Services after she, along with her two younger siblings, were removed from the custody of their mother due to substance abuse issues. The children were placed in foster care and Krystal began to self-harm.

Luckily, Krystal’s treatment team at Amanecer was able to assist Krystal’s grandmother in accessing and completing the parenting classes required by the county to obtain legal guardianship of the children. Krystal’s Parent Partner also assisted with implementing sessions between Krystal and her mother so that they could work on and improve their communication, with the hopes of her mother regaining custody one day.

However, Krystal continued to self-harm and experience immensely low self-esteem that led to body dysmorphia issues. She was also deeply depressed and struggled to find the motivation to do much, including completing her school work. Soon, Krystal was failing her classes. 

Krystal’s therapist at Amanecer taught her mindfulness exercises, which she greatly enjoyed. Her therapist also encouraged her to practice positive affirmations to improve her self-esteem as well as utilize a self-reflective journal between sessions. Her case manager helped her work out a plan with her school to make up homework assignments and begin receiving tutoring so that Krystal could graduate middle school on time. Krystal also took up soccer and was excited to try out for her high school team.  

Unfortunately, as things started to look up for Krystal, the pandemic hit and Krystal’s grandmother contracted Covid. She had to quarantine and Krystal stepped into the caretaker role to provide for her siblings. She not only had to figure out remote schooling for herself, but she had to help her sister and brother, who has a developmental delay, with their schooling. But this time, with the help of her case manager, she was able to communicate effectively with her teachers about the reason and work through it so that her grades did not suffer. Her treatment team was also able to assist Krystal with receiving groceries during this time. Krystal reports that currently she is doing okay in school and looks forward to when she can play soccer again with other people safely. She is grateful for the skills her Amanecer treatment team equipped her with and remains hopeful about the future. 

When you donate to Amanecer, you invest in the lives of kids like Krystal, helping them get through traumatic experiences and emotions to emerge more happy, healthy, and hopeful.