Safety Planning

Take your safety seriously. If you feel unsafe or threatened by your partner, think of ways to protect yourself.

If you are still with him/her:

You might not feel able to break up with your partner at the moment. But there are still things you can do to feel safer in the relationship.

• Tell friends or family and get them to help protect you by being around when your partner is there.
• Try not to be alone with him/her.
• Think of ways to stay in control of the situation. For example, if you are out, arrange another way of getting home rather than going with him/her, or try not to drink too much or use other drugs. Take extra money in case you need to call a taxi or use the telephone.
• Have an excuse prepared so you can leave quickly if you feel uncomfortable or scared.
• Have a code word or signal that you can use to get friends to help you.
• If you go to school or work with your partner, you could talk to a teacher or a workmate you trust to help protect you.
• Memorize or write down emergency numbers you can call if you feel you are in danger.
• If you want to break up with him/her but are scared about his/her reaction, you could consider telling him/her over the phone, rather than in person or break up with your partner in a public place.

After you have broken up with him/her:

You might still have contact with your ex-partner, especially if you are at the same school, workplace or have mutual friends. He/she may still try to contact you after you have split up. You could try the suggestions above, and also think about these ideas:

• Have an answering machine or someone else take messages from him/her.
• Arrange a safe place to stay where he/she can’t control you.
• Talk to someone about what you could do legally to protect yourself.

If you feel like you are in an unsafe relationship, please call Advocates of Ozaukee at 1-877-375-4034.