Hi, my name is Defne! In YouthLAB we learned about healthy relationships and what they look like. Here are some things I learned:

A healthy relationship involves respect, trust, honesty, and care for each other. Relationships are a two-way street; if someone isn’t putting in their share of effort and care, then the relationship can’t grow.

If maintaining a connection with someone takes an unreasonable amount of energy, starts to be a burden, and is overall causing stress, then the best thing to do may be to simply break up.

It can be hard to tell someone that you don’t want to be with them anymore, but it’s better to get it over with rather than drag it out. Though in some cases ending an unhealthy relationship can be very hard, especially if the person you trusted to be with hurts you on any level.

If you feel in danger and under pressure, remember that help is always available. Whether it be a friend, a family member, a teacher, or a counsellor.

Talk to your counsellor if your partner is threatening to hurt themselves if you break up with them or don’t want to do something they want you to.

You can resort to asking for help from emergency services to keep you safe.

If you feel in immediate danger, get away from your partner and think of someone who can help right away or call 9-1-1.

*Crisis line phone number: 1-800-784-2433