Submitted by Help Now of Osceola County
This is the fourth and final installment of a weekly set of tips during February — National Teen Dating Awareness Month.
Summer is right around the corner. We all know what that means — the line at every ice cream shop will be out the door filled with the sounds of laughter from family and friends after a Saturday in the sun playing T-ball, or working in the yard to get ready for tomorrow’s BBQ.
You order an ice cream sundae filled to the rim of the bowl with toppings. Hot fudge, caramel, Oreo pieces, chopped peanuts, and finally… the beautiful mound of whip cream right on top. All of your favorites in one big giant bowl, just like your support system.
A support system in your life is what helps keep you grounded. It’s those there for you at some of your lowest lows, and your highest highs. This is a system of deep trust, like how you can trust yourself, knowing you love vanilla ice cream as your base for your sundae.
Imagine you are the ice cream. Your support system often begins with family; they are first ones we learn trust and respect from. They understand our personalities and thoughts just as well as we do. They help us create our true self, and prepare us for future endeavors. It’s a mixture of blood relatives, relatives by marriage, or even those who are so close to us that we consider them family. They are the first set of toppings in your sundae—the hot fudge and caramel hugging the vanilla ice cream.
Friends are some of the ones we observe and learn the most from, primarily during our adolescence. We create these connections with our friends through new experiences, conversations, and adventures. Friends are the part of the support system who help us grow and help us learn to love life in the moment. With all the adventures, let’s think of them as the fun toppings — the Oreos, chopped nuts, and the whip cream.
Creating a support system takes time, just like curating your favorite sundae creation. You have to build trust and respect for one other. Support systems help us grow and validate us when we are expressing ourselves. They guide us through thick and thin and remind us to keep an open mind. The conversations we have with our family and friends can sometimes be awkward, but if we can’t ask or confide in them, who else can we turn to? TikTok? No, thank you.
You may not always know if you are a part of someone’s support system, either. Maybe the shy student in class considers you as one because you’re the only one who says, ‘Good morning,’ to them. Create a space that can be supportive for all, so there is support around every corner.
For information on— or to report—teen dating or other forms of domestic violence, visit Help Now of Osceola at www. Helpnowshelter.org, or call the 24-hour crisis hotline: at 407-847-8562.
