Whether it is the beginning of a romantic relationship or the fifth year of a friendship that has begun to show its wares, relationships are complex and learning how to address them early on is key to promoting a healthy lifestyle, according to the Women’s And Gender Equity Center.
The WGEC will host a “Let’s Talk Relationships” presentation in the University Student Union ballroom today from 6-8 p.m.
While open to all ages and types of relationships, the discussion is especially geared toward the issues that youth face today. The topics will include how to define, communicate and set boundaries in healthy versus unhealthy relationships. Then the talk will transition specifically to romantic relationships and how to assess those challenges, including how to repair an unhealthy relationship and deciding how to end one.
Speakers Tiffany N. Rivera, Branson Boykins and Christina Kreachbaum will cover the three sections of discussion.
The topics will take on a theme of treading water: “Diving In,” “Keeping Afloat” and “Braving the Storm.”
“[Learning to navigate relationships] is similar to swimming,” Desiré Campusano, a graduate student assistant for the WGEC, said. “Honing your technique from the tools you have gained, [you will] be able to swim like a pro.”
“Relationships aren’t easy, but they are a part of all of our lives,” Campusano said.
She said that talking about healthy relationships is key to discovering the many misconceptions surrounding “intimate partner dating violence.”
“A lot of times, people don’t realize they are in a toxic or unhealthy relationship,” Campusano said. “So, the more knowledge you have, you are more likely to choose a healthy relationship, and more likely to see the ‘Red Flags’ in unhealthy [ones].”
And this is not limited to just assessing individual connections; the talks will also provide tools to gauge other relationships.
“Everyone has a role to play in understanding the warning signs of unhealthy relationships they witness [or] are a part of, dismantling rape culture and in being an effective bystander,” Campusano said.
While this is the first of many in the “Healthy and Consenting Life Hack” series, the WGEC has promoted these types of discussions in response to the chronic number of sexual assault reports in the past five years, according to the WGEC.
“We know this has been going on for generations but, now, we are taking action that is long overdue,” Campusano said.