Hey there! I was in a similar boat. This might not be a popular solution but what got me, "out of the poverty trap" was going back to school. I have high ACT scores so I can get all my housing, meals, transport, paid for by grants and scholarships and what's left over I can always manage with student loans. I keep a part-time (Wednesday and Thursday) job so I have modest disposable income. I'm still in the thick of it; I won't receive full financial aid until the fall so family's helping out.

Don't lose hope! There are workable solutions to social problems.