Help Mara Rebuild Life After Abuse

Hi, I'm Mara. I'm in a bad situation and I need any help I can get.

On October 15, 2024, my husband and I separated when he was arrested for domestic violence, aggravated menacing, and assault. All of these offenses were against me.

Those are only the documented offenses, but the abuse had gone on for nearly 2 years. During that two year period, I was not allowed to have friends, get or maintain a job, go to most doctors appointments, or have full access to finances. I was also forced to sell my car due to his bullying and manipulation tactics. I ended up in the hospital multiple times with soft tissue damage, bone bruises, and a suspected broken jaw due to a few hefty hits that were dealt when I was asleep upon his return from work one night.

Upon the separation date, I was completely cut off from all finances, leaving me with little to survive on. I lived in our home for two weeks before having to make an emergency move upon finding out he was stalking me, against the temporary restraining order that was in place.

At first, things seemed to be looking up, I had a job, a place to live, a seemingly solid vehicle granted by the court. Once all of my saved up funds had been burned up, my job fell through and I was never paid. The transmission and starter in my car went out. My boss, who had been a friend, either stole, trashed, or lost my entire $10,000 inventory of body jewelry that was my entire career. A few other work items, sentimental items, and my only winter coat are also missing. It has been over a month now.

At that point I really had nothing. I found a new place to stay, and started driving my old project truck that is less than ideal due to all the work that it needs done. The new place that I'm staying barely has heat aside from a small heater I was able to buy, and the water isn't safe to drink or really use much at all.

I have applied for over 100 jobs in the last month, many do not pay enough to cover my fuel costs to get there, and many more will not hire me due to my past injuries and inconsistent work history.

The final court date for the CPO was December 3, 2024. The court gave me 1 year of no contact from him, and awarded me my truck. He got everything else, including the permission to cancel my phone and insurance. I'm afraid he will do that any day now.

I cannot afford an attorney, I can barely afford to eat. I do not get to see what family I have left, I simply don't have the money and neither do they. I can't even afford to do my laundry on a regular basis. I don't have a bed to sleep on. I sleep on a broken down love seat or on a stack of dog beds on a concrete floor. This isn't fun, and I don't recommend it.

All I have is my pets, my truck, and a gym membership so I can try to stay active, improve my mental state, and take clean showers.

I'm asking, please, if there is anything anyone can do. Anything and everything is appreciated, and I need help more than ever right now.

My goal is set at such a large amount in the hopes that I can replace all of my jewelry and go back to piercing, as well as get my truck fixed or obtain a vehicle I can truly trust, and afford an attorney to put a full close on this horrible sector of life.