Living in the digital age changes teenage relationships.
There are risks to having an online presence, especially when talking to others online. Junior Addy Mahurin shared what advice she would give to someone who just downloaded social media.
“Be careful about who you talk to and especially about what you post because nothing ever truly gets deleted,” Mahurin said.
Mahurin uses Snapchat and has criteria when adding people and talking to people.
“I only add people back if we have several mutual friends, and I’ll normally look them up on other platforms to see who they are,” she said.
Even though Mahurin uses social media carefully, she still has been in situations where people have made her uncomfortable.
“I’ve never felt unsafe, but I have felt uncomfortable,” she said.
Girls experience social media every day, and junior Hailey Lusk has experience and advice about young people joining snapchat.
“Good luck, you’re going to get attached. Always stay safe and make sure you aren’t putting yourself into a dangerous situation,” Lusk said.
Even though Lusk stays safe online, people can still make her uncomfortable.
“Yes, someone wouldn’t leave me alone and it made me uncomfortable,” Lusk said.
Lusk, before adding anyone back, she ensures the person follows a certain criterion to ensure they are safe to talk to.
“I look to see if they have a public profile and I look to see if we have mutual friends,” Lusk said.
Social media affects kids every day, and counselors often help kids work through tough situations that arise. Guidance counselor Mr. Sutton has firsthand experience in the matter.
“As a high school counselor, I have seen quite a few toxic relationships and how they can affect people. I would educate yourself and be aware of what online dating entails, and make sure you set up a prevention system for anything toxic that could take place,” Sutton said.
Mr. Sutton has one piece of advice for high school students experiencing online relationships, especially toxic ones. A toxic relationship is the imbalance of power between a couple.
“A lot of toxic relationships, you need to learn to value yourself because those kinds of relationships prey on insecurity. If you have confidence you’re less likely to have a toxic relationship,” he said.
