Use these resources to learn more about personal safety and ways to keep yourself safe.

• Create a Safety Plan | The National Domestic Violence Hotline (thehotline.org)
• Creating Safety at Home
  • Home is an important sanctuary for anyone, whether you’re in a relationship, single, or not even looking. It’s a space to make your own where you feel free to express yourself, comfortable decompressing, and most of all, safe and in control. No matter what is going on, safety at home is important.

    If you’re experiencing dating abuse, home can be more important than ever as a place to escape and be alone while you plan your next steps. Unfortunately, it can also be a site of enormous fear and stress if you’re uncomfortable or don’t feel safe.

    While there’s no single solution to reaching safety at home, there are many useful resources available to support you as you work on a safety plan, reduce potential risks around your house, and make the place you live a safer place to love.*

• Safety at School
  • While you’re likely going to school for a formal education, it’s no secret that a lot more happens there than just classroom learning. Being at school provides you with an opportunity to engage with others with greater independence than you may have at home and a chance to explore new relationships and interests.

    Given these opportunities, it’s important to remember that the systems you depend on for support may not be the same in different settings, especially if you’re attending school far away from home.

    Take time to identify ways to stay safe at school and contact love is respect 24/7 to discuss campus safety with one of our advocates.*

• Safety Online
  • Online safety while dating | Personal safety | love is respectMost of us spend a lot of time online. Pretty much everything we do can now be done on the Internet, including accessing information, keeping in touch with others, and getting help when we need it. Unfortunately, such frequent use (and the ways in which information is collected every time we go online) means partners who are abusive have more ways than ever to access your information and monitor your movements and behaviors.

    Remember:

    • Your computer and cell phone use can be monitored without you knowing it.
    • Your history can never be completely erased from a computer or device, even if you browse in “private” or “incognito” mode.
    • Email can be intercepted like physical mail.
    • Global Positioning System (GPS) trackers can be placed in your car or on items like your purse or cell phone.
    • love is respect advocates are available 24/7 to help you identify ways to take extra precautions when using technology.*

• Safety While Living with an Abusive Partner
  • Safety while living with an abusive partner – love is respect

BIPOC & Gender Affirming Counselors in the Capital Region