Love is respect – National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline

Since her return from the Peer Ambassador retreat in Dallas, Daegan has become very active in her community to raise awareness about teen dating abuse.  She is in the process of starting an organization to promote the ideas of loveisrespect called Badgers Against Dating Abuse, or B.A.D.A.  This is a great idea because her school has not had a club similar to this one.  She would like to begin promoting healthy relationships at her school and has decided to put loveisrespect posters around her school to advertise both the club and the website.

admin peer ambassador focus

The following Video Diary depicts a common type of abuse teens may experience in relationships – isolation/exclusion. This is categorized by controlling what another person does, who he/she sees or talks to, what she/he reads, where she/he goes, limiting outside involvement and using jealousy to justify actions.

Jenny is keeping Adam from his friends and family. She is texting him constantly and she is always keeping tabs on him. Those are all red flags of an unhealthy relationship. Read more…

admin psa

There are a million reasons why I enjoy working at loveisrespect, National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline. When I first learned of the position of being a peer advocate at the helpline I was thrilled and felt like it could not have come at a better time. I started in August ‘09 and since then I have been educated on so many important issues that I always wanted to be involved with before but never had quite the same opportunity as with working at loveisrespect. It has allowed me to carry out my part in raising dating abuse awareness not only at work but at school and in the community as well. Out of all the reasons why I am privileged to work at the Helpline, in the end the main one is not about me, but helping others and contributing towards making a positive difference in their lives.

admin peer advocate focus, peer advocates

I love working at loveisrespect, a huge reason why I love it here is because I was in a very unhealthy relationship in the past myself. Because of my past, I really think that I can relate to and understand those who have been in the same position I have been in. It means a lot to me when I talk to someone and they say thank you, because at that point I realize that I actually did help somebody and that I might have provided the advice they needed to have positively changed their future in some way. It feels awesome to know that I am part of a team that recognizes the importance of the Helpline and that truly makes a difference.

admin peer advocate focus, peer advocates