Healthy Relationships and Staying Safe

Sometimes a person’s behaviour can make you feel worried, uncomfortable, pressured or unsafe. If something doesn’t feel right, it is important to talk to someone and get support.

Whether you are worried about yourself or a friend, help is available.

What does a healthy relationship look like?

A healthy relationship should make you feel:

• Safe
• Respected
• Supported
• Listened to
• Able to be yourself
• Comfortable saying “no”
• Free to spend time with friends and family
• Able to make your own choices

Healthy relationships are based on trust, honesty and respect.

What is not okay?

Some behaviours are not normal and can be signs of an unhealthy or abusive relationship.

Someone may be crossing a line if they:

• Constantly check where you are
• Want access to your phone, passwords or social media accounts
• Get angry when you spend time with other people
• Tell you what you can wear
• Pressure you to do things you do not want to do
• Make you feel guilty for saying no
• Call you names or put you down
• Threaten to hurt themselves if you leave them
• Make you feel scared of their reactions
• Repeatedly send unwanted messages
• Share private information about you
• Track your location without your permission
• Try to control who you speak to

Even if someone says they do these things because they “care about you” or are “protecting you”, controlling behaviour is not healthy.

Online Relationships and Social Media

A person does not need to be physically present to be abusive.

Online warning signs can include:

• Pressure to send photos or videos
• Requests to keep secrets that make you uncomfortable
• Repeated unwanted messages
• Someone pretending to be someone else
• Threats to share private images or information
• Harassment through social media, gaming platforms or messaging apps

You should never feel pressured to share anything you do not want to share.

Worried About a Friend?

You might notice that a friend:

• Seems anxious or upset after receiving messages
• Stops spending time with friends or family
• Changes their behaviour because of someone else’s demands
• Seems frightened of upsetting a partner or friend
• Is being bullied, controlled or harassed online

If you are worried, listen without judging and encourage them to speak to a trusted adult or support service.