| What
is Abuse? There
are different types of abuse:
- Emotional
abuse is when someone is hurting another person’s
feelings by saying mean things and name-calling. This is
also called verbal abuse.
Examples
of emotional/verbal abuse are:
Cussing, swearing and cursing at another, verbal put-downs,
shaming and ridiculing, saying things you know will hurt
feelings, calling someone fat, good for nothing, dumb, stupid,
not worth having around.
- Psychological
abuse is when someone threatens to do harm to you
or someone you know. This could be a partner (or another
adult), to a child, to family and friends, to pets, or to
themselves (suicide). Psychological abuse involves not only
hurt and anger, but also fear.
Examples
of psychological abuse are:
Acting like you will punch, hit, kick, slap, use objects
or weapons, hurt another adult, a child or pets, throw things,
make others do things they don’t want to do, or anything
else to hurt them, punching walls, slamming doors, breaking
things, hiding or stealing things.
- Sexual
abuse is any touch or force by a person (or use
of an object) onto your body that is a bad touch. There
are good touches and bad touches. Good touches are when
someone you like or love gives you a hug or pats you on
the shoulder, or gives you a kiss on the cheek (unless you
do not want this).
A
bad touch is when someone touches your private parts, the
parts of your body that your bathing suit covers. If you
think you have had a bad touch often your body will help
you to know this. Your body may feel ‘funny’
in your tummy, or you may feel awkward or scared. It is
okay and best to tell a trusted adult if this is happening
to you. Don’t keep this a secret.
An
adult may tell you it is a secret but just like a good
touch and a bad touch, there are good secrets and bad
secrets. An example of a good secret is when a friend
asks you not to tell about a surprise, or when you share
something funny with a brother or sister. A bad secret
is a secret that someone asks you to keep even though
it feels wrong like if someone touches you and tells you
not to tell anyone.
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Keeping
Safe
If
you are feeling unsafe you need a safety plan. A safety plan
is thinking about what you can do to keep yourself safe, things
like this:
When
I feel afraid I can:
- Tell
someone I trust
- Ask
for help
- Talk
to a parent or other family member or adult until someone
listens
- Talk
to a friend
- Talk
to a teacher
- Talk
to a neighbour
- Go
to a safe place (my room and close the door, my closet,
another room I feel safe in, the neighbors, a friends, a
cousins)
Where
can you go to feel safe?
It
is important to know these things about myself in case I need
to leave my house:
- My
phone number
- My
address
- A
phone number of an adult that I trust
Have
a small bag of things you need put together and hidden somewhere
you can get to it, in case you need to leave your house. You
can have your phone number and address and a person you trust’s
phone number written down on a piece of paper and put in this
bag as well.
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IMPORTANT
PHONE NUMBERS TO CALL FOR HELP:
For
EMERGENCY
Dial: 9-1-1
Kids help phone: 1-800-668-6868
24 hours
everyday. They Listen. They help. This is kept private.
They are also on-line at: http://kidshelp.sympatico.ca
Teen
line
Ph:264-teen (8336)
4-11pm everyday
This is teens talking to teens and is kept private.
They can
help you with things like:
- Trouble
at school?
- Problems
with family?
- Problem
with friends?
- Need
to find a service for teens in the city?
- Feeling
like you just can’t cope?
- Feeling
like you just need to talk or ask someone a question?
If
you have questions about drugs or alcohol or you need information
or support about drugs or alcohol you can call:
Ph:269-DRUG
(3784)
Other
places you can call for assistance:
Woods
Homes Youth Shelter (24 hour service)
Ph:270-1742 (www.woodshomes.com)
This is a short-term safe shelter (up to 15 days) for young
people
Youth
Alternative Program (YAP)
Ph:508-6259
This provides support for young people 12-24 years old.
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Bullying
Tips
Tips
for Kids
- Tell
a caring/trusting adult—teacher, parent, school nurse,
principal, etc.
- Telling
is not tattling—bullying is a difficult problem and
you need adult help.
- Be
persistent and keep telling until you talk to an adult who
will listen.
- Ignore
the bully, but tell if the situation does not improve.
- Practice
saying “No.”
- Draw
or write about your feelings.
- Say
nothing and walk away.
- Stick
up for each other.
- Walk
in pairs, avoid walking alone when you can
- Act
confidently.
- Avoid
unsupervised areas of school.
- Don’t
bring your valuables to school.
What
is bullying?
- Bullying
is when someone is being mistreated continuously over time,
to negative actions by one or more persons.
- Bullying
can be direct physical or verbal aggression, things like
being hit or yelled at or being teased or called names.
Bullying can also be indirect which are things like threats
and intimidation, people purposely excluding you or gossiping
about you.
*Helpful
websites:
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