Another Story of Teen Dating Abuse - Illymation

One thing I think is really important to spreading awareness about teen dating abuse-- or any abuse-- is not just sharing one story. Abuse comes in many forms and every case is different. Sometimes, that makes it hard for people, especially teenagers, to understand what is happening to them is abuse. I have mentioned before that a lot of people, myself included at a young age, think that an abuser is someone who inflicts physical damage such as slapping or punching. However, the truth is that abuse comes in a wide variety of hateful behaviors. Physical abuse, emotional/mental abuse, verbal abuse, digital abuse, and sexual abuse. While I have described my experience dealing with all of these, it hardly covers the topic. As I said, every case is different. I've talked to other survivors and we all have different stories, usually with some commonalities, but never exactly the same. There is no sheet to show 'this is exactly what abuse looks like.' Sometimes it's easy to spot the warning signs and sometimes it isn't. Sometimes it's easy to leave and sometimes it's not. Sometimes all the victim receives is verbal abuse that tears them apart, and sometimes every category appears in the description of the relationship.

I saw the animation How I Met My Abusive (ex) Boyfriend on my suggested videos list in October. At the time, I knew I wanted to share it but I also wanted to wait for part two to come out. How I Left My Abusive (ex) Boyfriend was posted as I was getting ready for exams and I am happy to return to blogging by sharing this. There are so few first-hand accounts of teen dating abuse, and this case is far different from mine. And that is why it is especially important to share. Teenagers in this day and age have access to the world at their fingertips, and that opens them up to abuse not only by those around them but those that they don't even know. I encourage you to take time to watch both videos. While they do have explicatives, given the subject matter and what the animator went through, I can hardly say they aren't warranted (and there aren't many). Overall, I see this as a survivor being empowered to tell her story and to touch lives. With over two million views on the second of these videos, I think she has definitely helped a lot of people.

If you know any organization (scouts, church, etc.) that would like to have me speak on Teen Dating Abuse, please contact me through my website here with your email address. To keep up with updates on this blog please feel free to hit the subscribe button in the top right corner to be alerted to new posts every Monday. Have something you would like to know more about in the future? Leave a comment and I'll do my best to answer right away! Remember, the first step in solving the problem of teen dating abuse is awareness!