Violence

Violence is behavior that causes or intends to cause physical, mental, or emotional harm to another person. When a child grows up in an environment where violence is present, it can have serious and long-term effects on their development, behavior, and well-being.

That's why it is crucial to listen when a child talks about experiencing violence.

Healthy and unhealthy relationships

If two people are compatible with each other and create a relationship, often at the beginning of the relationship, in the so-called "falling in love" phase, they see the other person through "rose-colored glasses." After a while, they begin to see their partner more realistically and notice the partner's weaknesses and less pleasant qualities. A similar "dating process" occurs in friendships. In order to discover the character and personality of another person, it is good to use an open way of communication - talking openly about your feelings and thoughts.

Through open communication, you may discover more and more similarities in your friend or partner. You can tell each other what bothers you without hurting each other. Thus, satisfaction with the close relationship increases, and the relationship becomes more permanent.

But you may also discover differences between yourself and your partner or that your partner is not what you imagined. It also helps to understand the reasons for dissatisfaction with the relationship, and the relationship may become more unstable, or it may even end. Especially for this reason, dating relationships started at a young age can remain short-lived because the expectations for one's partner are often unrealistic. A healthy and satisfying relationship makes you feel good about yourself and your partner. You will have fun together, and you can both be yourself.

Healthy friendships and intimate relationships are characterized by:

an open way of communication;
honesty - partners do not hide anything important from each other and can say exactly what they think without fear of being laughed at;
can admit their mistakes and resolve disagreements by expressing their opinions honestly;
recognition - accepting each other exactly as they are, appreciating each other's peculiarities without trying to "fix" the other in any way;
respect - partners value each other highly and do not feel either superior or inferior;
they respect each other's right to disagree;
security - the feeling that you don't have to worry about your partner hurting you physically or emotionally, and you don't feel tempted to hurt them yourself;
equality - e.g., in making joint decisions, sharing responsibilities, and support in difficult situations; time spent together, conversations and joint activities, sharing your dreams and worries;
enjoyment - a good relationship must also be enjoyable and satisfying so you feel energetic and joyful beside your partner.

The opposite of a healthy intimate relationship is an "abusive" relationship in which there is exploitation and dishonesty. In such a relationship, everything revolves around control, fear, and lack of respect. As a rule, one of the partners controls the other, sowing fear and anger. In an abusive relationship, there may be threats, ridicule, and blaming of the partner, bouts of jealousy, and outright violence.

Problems in a relationship are indicated by:

lack of mutual respect and trust;
the feeling that you can't be "yourself" in the relationship;
feelings of loneliness and isolation;
lack of common interests and activities;
lack of frank conversations;
unequal distribution of responsibility and obligations;
constant dissatisfaction;
occurrence of physical, mental, or sexual violence.

If it seems like the relationship is abusive, it most likely is. Maybe deep down, you know that it would be better to be alone, but you are afraid of leaving your partner. If this is really the case, you should definitely turn to a parent, school psychologist, youth counselor, family physician, social worker, or someone else you can trust for help.

In such a situation, no one should be forced against their will to maintain unsafe and damaging close relationships.

Child Helpline is available at any time and for any concern!