Search Results: keeping me waiting

Ali is 16 years old. She is a sophomore student with no friends. The only relative she can turn to for support is her (slightly verbally abusive) mother. On Sunday, she had enough of her problems (too many to say) and carved the word "HELP" into her arm. She showed the school counselor on Tuesday. The counselor made her tell her mother, who already knows she self harms.

Ali has been severely depressed for 4-5 years. She has self harmed in many ways for about 4 years. She has no means of support in her life and no chance of going to college. She can't focus in school and fails all of her classes. She believes she can get better if she only had a long-term counselor and can get away from everything going on in her life. The thought of being hospitalized seems heavenly to her.

When she told her mom that she cut again, her mother screamed at her and called her stupid. She told her to just smoke some pot, smoke cigarettes, or drink. She said she was stupid over and over. Other days, she's called Ali selfish, a bitch, and more. Her daughter stays silent and never fights her.

She saw a counselor for a couple months two years ago. The counselor wasn't a good one, so she stopped going, and her mother never found another. She delayed getting health insurance for years, and is now delaying the process of finding a counselor. Ali has been patiently waiting for a really long time. Her problems continue to worsen, and she fears going insane from keeping everything inside.

Would it be beneficial to be locked away, or would it be a waste of time? Should this girl get away from her mother and her responsibilities to seek help for her mental state? Thank you.

How good are you with keeping a surprise? Be it birthday gifts, parties, you heard a rumour something good was happening (like a promotion) etc?
Can you do it? Or do you like surprises yourself?

I'm terrible at it, I get so antsy waiting for the birthday to hurry up and get here!