Let's talk about Love, sex and relationships

We form relationships as soon as we are born with parents, siblings and family.
As we move outside the home, school or neighbourhood, friends may become
important. As we get older new relationships such as teacher-student, employer-
employee, are formed. A relationship involves a connection between people and
although we come into contact with many people in our daily lives only a few
encounters will result in relationships or friendships. Some people have many
relationships, a wide circle of friends and acquaintances, and others prefer only a
few close friends.

Key Messages:
 We form relationships from the moment we are born and as we age, the
relationships we form evolve
 Healthy relationships can be characterised by closeness, respect, good
communication, shared goals/beliefs, shared interests and affection.
 Love is a feeling (emotional) whereas sex is a behaviour. There are many
ways of showing love that do not involve sex and there are also ways of being
physically close without having sex.

Social Norms and Peer Pressure related to Dating and Youth
Some teens may feel pressure to date from friends. There is no set age or time to
start dating. Many people do not start dating until they have finished school
because other things are more important to them such as their school work, a
sport they enjoy or just hanging out with a group of friends. The media may
present images of couples in movies, TV shows and advertising putting forward
the idea that everyone is dating. These representations are not realistic.
Relationship Characteristics
Some important characteristics of a healthy romantic/sexual/intimate relationship
are:

Closeness
 You are caring and loyal.
 You trust your partner.
 You share your feelings.
 You support your partner during illness or during stressful times.

Shared Goals and Beliefs
 You share beliefs and values.
 You recognize and respect differences in each other.

Shared Experiences
 You share common interests and friends/acquaintances.
 You talk about your experiences and accept and respect each other’s
individual interests.

Communication
 You are honest with each other.
 You listen to each other.

Respect
 You use respectful language and do not act in ways that demean your
partner.
 You understand your partner’s wishes and feelings.
 You are ready to compromise—to meet your partner halfway.

Affection
 You show your partner you care.
 You show each other affection in many ways.

Comments

Family Planning in Eswatini

Family Planning in Eswatini Family Planning is the ability of an individual or couple to plan their family size, birth intervals of their children, when to start and stop having children through the use of family planning methods that are safe, effective, accessible and acceptable. These include both modern and natural family planning methods. Eswatini Family Planning programme is by far one of the leading programmes in Africa as there are proportionally more currently married women who are using modern methods of contraception than in other countries. In 2014, the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate reached 66% thereby putting the country on the same spot as Zimbabwe with the highest CPR in the continent. Despite these tremendous achievements by the government, inequalities in terms of access to Family Planning continue to exist among different groups of women particularly younger and vulnerable women. According to MICS 2014, younger women aged 20-24 and older women ...

Sexual Rights Are Human Rights!

Sexual Rights Are Human Rights! The Family Life Association of Swaziland (FLAS) took a paradigm and strategic shift in 1999 after the IPPF conference to focus on young people and integrate Sexual and Reproductive and Health Rights programing. The focus has brought about a lot of controversy amongst the conservative and religious sector especially when SRHR is used in conjunction with young people. Hence the objective of today’s article is to explain what are Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights as well as the essence of providing comprehensive SRHR services and information to young people in Eswatini. Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) encompasses all of the rights and issues surrounding a person’s Sexual and Reproductive life. These rights are closely linked with other internationally recognised human rights, such as the right to privacy, the right to education and information, the right to equality and freedom from violence and all forms of discrimination, t...

AFRICAN CITIZENS INITIATIVE (ACI)

AFRICAN CITIZENS INITIATIVE (ACI) The Family Life Association of Swaziland (FLAS) has launched the African Citizens Initiative (ACI) in the country to mobilise the extensive network of volunteers, corporate partners, friends and staff for resource mobilisation purposes. The ACI is one of the many initiatives undertaken by FLAS and IPPFAR to respond in the changing donor architecture and reduction in core funding as traditional donors shift their focus to other global priorities. The African Citizens Initiative will then create and support a pooled fund to eventually replace the reductions in core funding that member Associations are experiencing. What is the African Citizens Initiative? The African Citizens Initiative (ACI) is an innovative regional approach which seeks to use the extensive network of FLAS volunteers, friends, partners and staff for resource mobilisation purposes through making pledges of a fixed amount of money over certain period of time. This is a Peer to Pee...

Youth Action Movement Eswatini

Search This Blog