“Being in a relationship to me means having a companion.  Not just a boyfriend, but a best friend as well, having someone who’s there for you,” said senior Madi McKenzie.

Relationships can be fun and carefree, but for high school students especially, they can also be the source of stress in the lives of some.  While a relationship can be a healthy relationship that does not cause much stress,  it can still be difficult to dedicate time to a relationship and with that, comes stress.  Students not only have to attend school, but many spend their free time working, participating in sports or other extracurricular activities.  It can be difficult to try to manage all of those things and a relationship.

While being in a long term relationship has not negatively affected McKenzie’s grades, it has been tough on her boyfriend’s grade point average (GPA).

“With Jake, if I don’t go to school then he doesn’t go to school just because he knows I won’t be there.  But if I know he’s going to be gone, I’ll still go to school,” said McKenzie.

For McKenzie, being in a long term relationship has been a good thing for her other relationships.  Being with her boyfriend Jake Iverson, also a senior, has brought her closer with her dad.

“He comes over to my house, and my mom totally adores him.  If anything, it’s brought me and my dad closer together because the three of us and my step mom all went down to Tennessee over Thanksgiving to visit my sister, and it brought us all together,” said McKenzie.

All relationships, no matter how different, have their ups and downs.  In a healthy relationship, the good will outweigh the bad or highs and lows will balance each other out.

Being in a relationship can be difficult, not only for the people in the relationship, but also for the people around them.  When there is tension in a relationship, it affects more than just the people in the relationship.  It can affect the friends and families of those in the relationship.  Others may feel like they have to carry some of the burden of the relationship, too.

“Two of my friends just broke up, and I don’t know how to deal with it.  I want to help, but I have my own problems too, and I don’t know how to deal with their problems at the same time.  It’s stressful,” said senior Donovan Kane.  “I feel like my friend should know a little more about life and problems because she’s a lot older than me, but she doesn’t know how to handle break-ups and neither do I.  I want to help, but I don’t know what to do.”

Relationships are exciting, especially at first, but they are a lot of work as well.  They are a part of growing up, just like so many other things that students learn through their years in the high school that will help carry them through the rest of their lives.