<prompt> Human: Edit 3: WOW. Some of you guys have got to stop bashing my moms and my decisions. We know we messed up but we dont know how and now were asking for help. Do not put me down for dropping out of high school to get my GED. Its a perfectly reasonable solution and so many people do it. It has no effect on my future and is allowing me to support my mom and I right now. Im not worried about my future career and all of that because everything is already planned. We need help NOW so we dont end up homeless. Please stay focused. Just for some backstory: My names Josh and Im a 17 year old who dropped out of high school to work full time to support my family. We lived in Denver my whole life and then had to move to Chicago because of my step-dads job, but my mom and him ended up getting divorced this month so now Im in an apartment with her and we are struggling majorly. I work 8 hour days everyday at McDonalds and she works 10 hour days at her salary job as a manager at a medical billing company. Today our power was shut off and we have no money for two weeks to turn it back on. Weve gotten multiple eviction notices but luckily my moms paycheck is just enough to cover rent and her car. My paycheck goes towards food and utilities but it came down to deciding between food and electricity for us. Ive been struggling with anxiety and depression almost my entire life and I went to rehab last year and jail this year. Medical bills and court fees are just being completely ignored right now but I know that cant last. I also have a 9 year old brother that comes every two days to stay with us but he always ends up eating at my step-dads house because we dont have all the food that he wants here. So my question is...why is this so difficult??? When my parents were together I would definitely consider us middle class but now...I just think its absolutely ridiculous that a mom and teenager both working full time still cant pay their electricity bill or buy food. What do I do??? I have no hot water, no car, no phone service, no electricity, and I cant even pay for myself to take the SAT and submit a college application. Ive been in tears almost everyday since I noticed we were struggling. No one else in my life goes through this so I dont know how to handle it. Its honestly incredibly embarrassing and just taking a huge toll on my and my moms stress and health. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Her credit sucks and all of her credit cards are maxed out and Im not legally allowed to take out a line of credit. We also dont buy anything excessive, in fact were getting along just fine with a 15 year old tv that a friend gave to us. Edit: We havent talked to my moms father of brothers in years. She wont ask them for money.Edit 2: heres our budget. Round number for simplicityTogether we bring in about 3500 a month.Rent-1800Renters Insurance- 200Food-350Moms Car-300Moms Car Insurance-200Moms Gas-150Brothers Daycare-250Prescription Medications-150Utilities, credit cards, medical bills, court fees - ??? We cant even pay those.  <response>: How is renters insurance 200 pmo? I live in NYC and I only pay 125 per YEAR. See if you can get prescriptions changed to generics, that seems really high. You pay too much for rent. Hands down, too much. You need to downsize your living situation ASAP. As others have mentioned, apply for SNAP and any other type of government or local assistance that might be available. 