Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month
February is TDVAM, which makes it an important month to start talking to teens about dating, specifically dating violence. In the US, one in three teens will experience physical, sexual or emotional abuse from their partners before they reach adulthood. This statistic is demonstrating that teen dating violence is becoming more and more common. As a community, how can we help prevent teens from entering abusive relationships?
The first step is to have conversations with teens, but also hear teens. Every year during TDVAM, there is a theme, this year the theme is Talk About it! The theme is meant to empower teens to discuss what makes a relationship healthy or unhealthy. This is a month to encourage questions. Creating safe environments for teens to speak about their worries, or general thoughts on dating is incredibly valuable.
What is Violence?
It’s safe to say when we think of the word violence, we think of physical violence. Violence is more complex than harming someone physically. Types of violence can vary from physical, sexual, psychological and harassment and stalking. Punching walls, throwing things, degrading language, controlling the way their partner dresses, or slowly isolating their partner from their loved ones can all be examples of abuse. Love Is Respect created a helpful spectrum chart, which can help teens understand what would be considered healthy, unhealthy, or abusive in a relationship. To further understand the distinguish between the three relationships, use the chart below.
Throughout this month, it is important to understand each type of abuse. Understanding what abuse can look like can help teens look out for warning signs of an abusive relationship.
In a perfect world we would be able to protect teens from abusive relationships, but unfortunately, many kids are being exposed to violent relationships at an early age. How can we help prevent these relationships from occurring? A powerful tool is knowledge. Giving them the tools to recognize the different types of violence is immensely valuable.
Resources
Teens who have experienced dating violence often do not come forward. They fear of the repercussions from parents, fearful of what their peers will think or carry shame. It is important to respect teens and create safe environments where they can ask questions about dating, but also come forward with their stories with dating violence. An open dialogue free from judgement can help teens feel comfortable sharing their questions and fears of dating.
Here are helpful resources about teen dating violence or about getting help:
