Alex, in between school semesters and frustrated with being stuck at home with their parents, was looking for something new and stimulating to do at home while social distancing.
“I thought I would get to finish out my senior year with my best friend after our extended spring break,” said Alex, who is now quarantining with their family in Fullerton, CA. “And then businesses started opening again so I was hopeful life would go back to normal but then it seemed to get worse with all the closings.” Alex is one of at least 14 million college students affected by the pandemic, according to an estimate by a Georgetown professor.
After another evening of scrolling through social media, Alex stumbled upon Radiant Futures’s Facebook Live Stream, “Navigating and Adapting to Our New Normal,” and joined in on a whim. For a brief moment, Alex didn’t feel isolated but rather felt connected and understood when Radiant Futures Advocate Jessica talked about the unique stressors on college students right now due to the pandemic because of their uncertain educational opportunities and futures.
After tuning into the Live Stream, Alex decided to register for the virtual workshop on healthy relationships. In week 1, Alex was nervous and hesitant to join because they didn’t know what to expect. But during the workshop, Alex was pleasantly surprised to find that the Zoom call was fun because there were others like Alex that shared they were feeling stuck at home. For the next 5 weeks, Alex felt more and more comfortable sharing about their healthy and unhealthy relationships that they’ve experienced in the past and working through how they could use coping techniques to create healthier habits in future relationships.
“My favorite topics were identifying signs of an unhealthy relationship, how to set boundaries, and learning ways for self care and healing.”
Alex, excited to use their new knowledge to support and educate others about intimate partner violence and the foundations of healthy relationships, has registered for Radiant Futures’s 40 hour domestic violence advocate training for August.
“I never expected that I would connect with so many like-minded individuals during quarantine and I’m excited to take the next steps to become a domestic violence advocate.”
If you are interested in becoming a certified domestic violence advocate or learning more about healthy relationships, call our 24/7 helpline at 877-531-5522 or email love@radiantfutures.org to find more opportunities for education and prevention.