About two months ago, I moved out and left my abusive ex and as I feared, the meant also losing my 15 year old son.

Before I moved out, I saw that he was suffering and I tried to encourage him to get someone to talk to for support. In that process, I told the person in question about the situation at home so she'd know what we were dealing with and also asked for help in how to motivate my son to go. (It didn't work.)

She ended up reporting to authorities and an investigation was made. At first I was not too happy about that, afraid of how the dad would react when he found out and such, but they soon became my biggest hope. If they could see what was going on, they might be able to actually help.

Now, the results were realistically hardly surprising but very disappointing nonetheless.

• The dad and I tell different stories, he says that I'm lying and I say that he's lying, and our son's story does not support my claims so they are ignored. (And it apparently doesn't matter that I told them as it happened that I'd heard the dad instruct our son in what to say and not.)

• They see no proof that there is anything problematic about my son staying with his abusive dad. They even said that with me gone, the problem is solved because he no longer has to witness abuse.

• They see no problems with the way the dad talks with our son about me, they don't acknowledge the parental alienation at all.

• They don't care that he's depressed and suffers from anxiety, barely goes to school, doesn't meet anyone without his dad present and spends most of his time alone in his room.

• They don't care that he told them right after I moved out that he wants to live part time with me and then, after a month isolated with his dad, no longer wants that (according to his dad, speaking for him). Because the dad blamed it on me and a talk I had with our son that made him no longer want to. Only, that talk never happened.

• They say that my son and I don't have a good relationship, so they are offering counselling for us to work on that. But only if our son wants to go, and his dad consents to it. And if not, no consequences and nothing will happen.

• I asked them where else I can look for help since clearly they don't see the problem but I don't want to give up on my son. They said I can always sue for sole custody but... With the situation being as it is, that wouldl most likely turn out the opposite way. (And then his new partner can adopt my son and I have no say in it.)

I guess there is still a small chance that he actually goes and I get a chance to show him that I'm not what he has been made to believe but... Otherwise, I guess I'm back to just letting him know that I love him and that I'm always there, and hoping that maybe he sees things differently at some point in the future when he's free from his controlling father's grip.