February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month.
It’s important to recognize that abuse and unhealthy relationships don’t just happen in adult relationships, but it can happen at any age and any stage of the relationship. Did you know that 1 in 10 Indiana kids reported experiencing physical violence in a relationship? And that doesn’t account for the number of teens that experience emotional, sexual, or verbal abuse from a dating partner. Sometimes spotting whether someone is in an abusive relationship can be hard, especially when it comes to teen dating violence.
Warning Signs for Trusted Adults to Pay Attention to with Teen Relationships:
· Has loss of interest in normal activities
· Becomes more critical of self
· Becomes increasingly secretive
· Changes appearance in an out of character way
· No longer shows interest in friends
· Grades drop
· Experiences more anxiety and depression
· Unexplainable injuries or bruises
· Minimizes partner’s misbehavior or excuses it
· Becomes isolated from those that they normally trust
If you or someone you know might be in an abusive relationship, there are many local resources available to help.
https://dvnconnect.org/youth/for-youth/
https://www.loveisrespect.org/dating-basics/
Text LOVEIS to 22522 Get answers for healthy and safe relationships
Text ANSWER to 839863 for 24/7 crisis line for help, support, and information