National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline 1- 866-331-9474
What Can You Do to Keep Yourself Safe?
Talk about your situation with a friend or relative you trust. That
person may be able to offer you support. Establish a code word or sign
that you can use to let friends, family, teachers, or co-workers know
when to call for help. Contact your local domestic violence program to
find out about community resources and laws. Call now and they can help
you develop a safety plan. Ask how you can get a restraining order. Keep
a copy of it with you at all times.
If you are on danger call 911, if it is possible to do so.
Plan with your children. Identify a safe place for them, such as a room
with a lock or a neighbor’s house. Assure them that their job is
to stay safe, not to protect you. If you decide to leave, take important
items with you. You may want to pack these items in advance and keep
them at the home of a friend or relative.
Important items may include:
Passports, green
cards, work permits
Lease agreements/
House deed
Birth and divorce
certificates
Address book
ID card
Medicine
Driver’s
license
Passwords
School and medical
records
Keys (house, car,
office)
Insurance Papers
Clothes
Money (cash, bankbooks,
credit cards)
Pictures or other
sentimental items
Car registration
Your children’s
favorite toys
If the abuser has moved out, change the locks on your doors and get
locks for the windows. Screen your calls and/or get Caller ID. Consider
changing your phone number and/or trading in your mobile phone. Your
home computer use may be monitored, so use a “safer computer” at
a library/public area, change passwords, and create a new & anonymous
email address.
If you are being abused please call the domestic violence program nearest
you.
