AS a relationship educator, that doesn’t mean that my romantic, family relationships and friendships have been perfect. Far from it.

What it does mean is that I am educated and trained in my field, it means I have lived experience of the healthy and unhealthy aspects of love, and family,  it means I understand the theory and practice of education particularly with youth and those disengaged and more hard to reach and that I understand communication and how to share media messages and learning with the intention to bring about positive and active change. 

All relationships go through ups and downs, that’s life, they will involve disagreements and stress, particularly when going through some pretty major life events and huge transitions, it’s not linear. And that is perfectly okay.

Blending families and moving home and financial changes and bringing together people with differences in values and beliefs, with different backgrounds, and additional needs is never, ever easy. That’s why some families break down. 

To become a strong unit and retain your family relationship you have to be able to navigate your way through these ups and downs. It’s hard work and it takes time and dedication. And one of the shows of a healthy relationship is how you adapt and cope and manage during these tough times. 

If you find yourself hiding what’s going on behind closed doors, pretending to the world your sleeping on a bed of roses when in-fact someone is sleeping in their car again, then that’s worryingly unhealthy. 

Being transparent with your family and friends is crucial, remembering it’s okay to not be okay all of the time and you are allowed to access support and speak out to those that you love and care for during tricky times.

Truth of the matter is, that sometimes relationships don’t work out,  and that’s perfectly okay, but ending relationships respectfully is a must, and this is a skill that many adults absolutely need to learn. 

And sometimes relationships do work – if you have well developed and effective communication skills, if you are able to establish your own healthy boundaries, when you can listen to each other, and understand and are capable of supporting each others needs, then you will get through the hard times, of which there will be more….because life is like that!

At times life will be all Tiffany diamonds and pearls and they the next thing you know its a 10 bob token of love & a bit of a shitshow.

#howtobearelationshipeducator #RSE #healthyrelationships #family #trust #livedexperience #reflection #career #blendedfamilies