Unhealthy Relationships

Unhealthy relationships can happen to the best of us. As teenagers we are still figuring out what we want, figuring out who we are, and what we like in people’s personality. There are good, healthy relationships and unhealthy relationships.

Ms. Derizzio, a social worker at East High School, defines an unhealthy relationship as “one person, or actually both of the people in the relationship are not treating each other right.” This is a sign that the relationship might be going downhill. Relationships aren’t always easy to tell if they are unhealthy if you’re the person in the relationship. “What I usually see when the relationship is unhealthy is when the guy, or the girl is controlling in the relationship,” adds Derizzio.  “If one person is not benefitting, or the person is not happy, for whatever reason, sometimes that person stays, and deals with the unhappiness, and doesn’t speak up, the couple doesn't communicate as they should.” This is why there are so many relationships fail. When communication fails so does the relationship.

The worse types of unhealthy relationship is when there is physical abuse. When a man hits a women they’re too afraid to speak up. Another type of unhealthy would be emotionally or verbally abusive relationships. When a man tells a woman things such as “I am the only one that will care about you” or “No one will love you,” these are things the man says to make a woman stay in the relationship. Women stay because they believe that these things are true, and that the abuse that they are encountering is normal and healthy, when in reality it’s not.

If you think you might be in an unhealthy relationship, find someone to talk to who can help you through it.  At East High, we have counselors and social workers at every grade level who can help you figure things out.  People are here to listen and to help. Remember, you're not alone.

Saranne Kaufman