Teen Dating Gone Bad…
Here is another excellent post by Vanessa Van Petten, 
“7 Facts About Teen Dating Abuse: Smothering and Obsessive Youth.” I especially liked her #6, which I’ve quoted here: “Abuse does not only have to be physical. Abuse can be emotional, verbal, psychological or physical. This is an important idea to explain to young couples. Often times, someone in the relationship (see inequality above) feels uncomfortable, but is afraid to say anything because they think it is normal or would not qualify as abuse.”
I encourage you to do as Vanessa suggests — print her article and use it as a starting point for talking about dating with your teens. From my perspective, it can also lead to discussions about underage drinking and how the latter can lead to compromised relationships (unplanned sex or going further than planned, for example), which in turn can cause teen’s to tolerate dating abuse out of embarrassment, confusion or fear of reputation reprisals.
