Women's Sexual Assault Centre of Renfrew County

24hr Support and Crisis Line: 1-800-663-3060

"Women working together
to END sexual violence through community connections."

About Abuse Get Involved Resources About Us


 

 

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What's Up

Being a teenager can be challenging and confusing.  You may be dealing with a lot of changes, pressures and personal issues.  This information is designed with you in mind.  We've checked out resources in Renfrew County and further out into the world wide web and collected the most information-packed, interesting, "For Youth" websites  and information.

You'll find information about Sex, Sexuality, Abuse, Healthy Relationships, Birth Control and self-protection, Suicide, Internet Predators, Drugs & Alcohol and more.

Important - We have tried to review the content of each of the websites listed to ensure they are honest and accurate, but it is always smart to question the information you are getting by asking people you trust.


Relationships

Relationships are complicated, but whether it's your parents, friends, boyfriend, girlfriend, boss, teacher, or any other person in your life you have the right to be safe and respected!

Recognizing what's healthy and what's not can help you decide how to handle a situation.

GREEN LIGHT RED LIGHT
Mutual Respect Finding Fault
Mutual Trust Trying to change the person
Mutual Support Jealousy, Controlling
Relaxed and Easy going Lies, manipulation, secrets, physical, emotional, sexual or verbal abuse

For support or more information:


Being comfortable with your Sexual Orientation

We are all sexual beings, but only you can answer the question "what is your sexual orientation"?

Are You...??? Questioning??  It's not unusual to question your sexuality, especially when you are a teenager.

Or maybe you identify as...Transgender...Intersexed...Heterosexual...Bisexual...Gay...Queer...   Lesbian...  Two Spirited

There is no time limit on deciding or defining your sexual identity, and you may change your  mind...that's OK.

Getting informed and talking about sexuality is the best way to understand yourself, your friends and the issues that you or others may be facing.

For support or more information:

 


Going public with your Sexual Orientation - "Coming Out"

Before deciding if, when and what you will tell others about your sexual identity, you may want  to  consider:

  • How comfortable are you with your sexuality?

  • Who are you going to tell? (Trust your instincts about how they will react and how supportive they will be)

  • Who are you going to tell first?

  • How much information you have and want to share.

  • Your safety.

  • Emotional & financial supports you have.

A reality about gender and sexual diversity is that you may face negative reactions, but the PROBLEM IS NOT YOU.  Fear and hatred is a product of ignorance,  and lack of understanding 

              NO MATTER WHAT YOU DECIDE TO DO:

                                                      Be proud of who you are.    

                                        Remember you deserve to be loved and accepted.

For support or more information:


Sex

Should be Healthy, Consensual & Fun!!

It's normal and natural to have sexual feelings- it's part of life! For a lot of youth, being a teen means experimenting with SEX.  Before you decide whether or not to have SEX, you may want to understand how to protect yourself from Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI's) and unplanned pregnancy.

It's a good idea to consider that having SEX may change your relationship with your partner. Be sure this is what you want and that you understand your beliefs   about sex and sexuality, and  KNOW YOUR OPTIONS. Yep, options...

There's more to sex than "SEX"!!!   Kissing, Grinding, Mutual Masturbation, Oral Sex, Phone  Sex...

For support or more information:


Birth Control & Self Protection

Knowing about birth control, reproductive options & emergency contraception is part of taking care of yourself and your well being.

DID YOU KNOW?

  • there are many forms of birth control to choose from

  • only condoms, female condoms and dental dams help protect against STD's & STI's, but will  not protect you from everything!

  • if you are pregnant there are options: keep the baby, place the baby for adoption or end the pregnancy.

ONLY YOU CAN CHOOSE WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU!

For support or more information:

 


Sexual Assault

Every 17 minutes a female is sexually assaulted in Canada

Sexual assault is any unwanted act of a sexual nature including rape, touching or other                      unwanted contact.

  • 31% of sexual assaults happen in dating or acquaintance relationships.

  • Being drunk or high or dressed in a certain way is not "asking for it."

  • You are more likely to be assaulted by someone you know.

  • Men who commit sexual assault come from every economic, ethnic, racial, age and social group. They can be our doctors, teachers, boyfriends, parents, clergy, relatives or neighbors.

  • After a sexual assault, you may feel shock, disbelief, guilt, anger, fear, depression or denial. Or you may feel nothing at all.

  • A woman who has been sexually assaulted needs to be believed, heard, supported and not             blamed.

For support or more information:


"only YES means YES"

"NO" means NO

"NOT NOW" means NO

"I HAVE A BOYFRIEND" means NO

"NO THANKS" means NO

"YOU'RE NOT MY TYPE" means NO

"&%$#!! OFF" means NO

"DON'T TOUCH ME" means NO

"I'D RATHER BE ALONE" means NO

"I'M NOT SURE" means NO

SILENCE means NO

"I'D LIKE TO BUT..." means NO

BEING HIGH means NO

Sexual contact without consent is AGAINST THE LAW

Getting consent means she said YES

For support or more information:


Suicide

  • 500,000 youth, ages 15-25, attempt suicide each year.

  • #1 cause of teen suicide is untreated depression.

  • Suicide attempts seem impulsive, but 8/10 people have hinted about or mentioned their plans before trying it.

  • People considering suicide may change their mind if they talk about the issues.

  • Aboriginal, Gay and Lesbian teens are often at higher risk because of their social and family environment or community.

  • Suicide is permanent. Find someone that you trust to talk with.

For support or more information:


Body Image & Self Care

Liking and caring for your body isn't always easy.  As a teenager your body is changing, and                   there is constant pressure to fit in to what your friends, school mates and the "media" say is cool. Low self-esteem and poor body image is a real and common concern among young women.  Feeling critical of yourself or of your body may come from day to day influences of friends, mates or the media, or may be triggered by other issues like abuse. It is not unusual  for teenagers who  have low self-esteem to harm themselves or develop disordered eating. It is important to recognize that these are serious (and dangerous) issues.

For support or more information:


Drugs & Alcohol

Experimentation with drugs and alcohol is a common part of teen culture.  Teenagers experiment for a lot of reasons- not just "peer pressure".  Drugs and alcohol can affect your judgment and you might take risks you would otherwise avoid.  The important thing is to understand yourself, your reason and HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF from drug related illness and disease,  including addiction and HIV/Aids, unplanned pregnancy, vulnerability to sexual assault & rape drugging.

For Support or more information:

Youth and AIDS:


Internet Predators

From the safety of their home or office, a stalker can find out details about you, including your phone number, address and family details.

It seems strange to think a person you only know through the NET can be dangerous, but Cyber-stalking is real and can take place without your knowledge.

Stalking means: harassing or threatening behaviour like following a person around chat rooms,          showing up at their house or work, harassing phone calls or messages.

Know what you can do to protect yourself from internet stalkers.  Learn to recognize danger signs  and report people who are abusive or appear to be a danger.

For support or more information:


Safety Tips & Useful Information

  • Trust your instincts (about potentially dangerous situations), and do whatever you need to do to be safe (yell, leave, run, fight, etc).

  • Let someone know where you're going and when to expect you back, and have a way out (bus fare, cab fare, friend you can call for a ride).

  • Know who you're with, at least full name and address.

  • Know local emergency phone numbers.

  • Ask for help (never be shy or embarrassed)


Other Safe Places & Cool Spaces

Young Women

www.gurl.com

Sex & Sexuality

www.spiderbytes.ca

http://positive.org

Aboriginal Youth

www.ayn.ca

Suicide

www.youthsuicide.ca

Cool & Interesting

www.mediawatch.com

www.connectingcfyouth.ca

www.homophobiaday.com

Just for Teens

Kid's Help Phone - 1-800-668-6868  en français

www.teenwire.com

www.deal.org


Send email to: directorwsac@vianet.ca with questions or comments about this web site.
Last modified: 01/08/2010