COLUMBUS – February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, and health and safety groups are educating Ohio teens about the importance of healthy relationships.
An estimated 1.5 million high school students in the U.S. suffer physical abuse from a dating partner each year, most cases involving a partner who wants to control the other.
“In the beginning of a new relationship, that jealousy or that protectiveness, it might seem flattering, it might feel okay. But soon, very quickly, it can become suffocating, isolating and really turn into an abusive dynamic,” says Melissa Graves with the Domestic Violence and Child Advocacy Center in Cleveland.
While physical attraction may ignite a relationship, Graves explains respect, trust, consent and open communication are all crucial to keeping it healthy.
Teen dating violence can take the forms of physical, sexual, verbal and emotional abuse, and can lead to depression, alcohol or drug abuse, negative body image and poor school performance.
Victims of teen dating violence can contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline for support, said Heather Frederick, the hotline’s bilingual digital services manager.
“Because we know how difficult it can be to have those conversations with parents or teachers, or other people – even just to have those conversations face to face,” she said. “The option to do it over the phone, or through chat or text, is a lot more comfortable for younger people.”
The hotline number is 866-331-9474. Help is available by texting 22522 or online at loveisrespect.org.