NYC woman says family locked her up like a prisoner: 'It was so frightening'.

NEW YORK (PIX11) -- An 81-year-old New York City woman says she was abused at the hands of her own family.

Margie Allen, 81, said her nephew and his girlfriend locked her up like a prisoner inside her Harlem apartment.

Allen said it all started a few years ago when she allowed the couple to move in to help her out with paying bills. Allen said she thought the girlfriend was a nice person, but then things got really ugly.

Allen said they stopped paying rent and the harassment started. Allen said the couple put up a gate to block her from using the bathroom or going into the kitchen.

Allen said at one point the abuse turned physical and police were called. Apparently the couple had plans to take over her finances and her apartment.

Allen showed PIX11 News pictures of the conditions inside of her apartment. She said the hallway was filled with clutter, and her nephew stopped her from going outside.

“He wouldn’t allow me to get out of the apartment, and he would push me back. I was upset and scared," Allen said.

To top it off, Allen said the nephew allegedly tried to have her committed to a mental institution, but that’s when she was able to get help from Stephanie McGraw, founder of the nonprofit We All Really Matter.

"At her critical point, this family member wanted the apartment and they went to court and told the court she was mentally incapable of taking care of herself and was trying to get her admitted to the psychiatric ward," McGraw said.

McGraw and her team quickly moved in to help Allen navigate the court system, get the nephew and his girlfriend out of the apartment, and get Allen counseling, among other resources.

Allen is now free and doing much better. She offers this advice to other seniors who may fall victim: "You may think you can handle it by yourself, but you can’t. You have to find people to help you as I did.”