High school relationships are a hot-topic. Stories of messy breakups and high school sweethearts send contradicting messages to a teen navigating the social jungle throughout these four formative years of their life. Are they worth it? Is the reward greater than the risk? 

High schoolers by themselves can be emotional, stressed and easily distracted. Love thrown into the mix makes such a confusing time more difficult. High school relationships are not worth the risk because they statistically do not last, they impede self-exploration, and the effects of a breakup can be detrimental to a teen’s sensitive mental health. 

Only 2% of high school relationships last, while 28% of college relationships result in marriage. 28% may not be a staggering statistic, but it goes to show how much time and maturity play into relationships.Yes, in a relationship one begins to learn how to trust and communicate, but what happens when that trust is broken or that communication fails? All that is left is hurt feelings and lowered self-esteem, which is, statistically, extremely common. 

From ages 14-19, responsibilities are added to a teen’s life at every turn such as college planning and ultimately deciding where their life will go. The maturity of a relationship requires that teens be selfless. Maybe not intentionally but inherently, teens tend to worry about their own responsibilities and needs above that of others. Also, how can someone decide who they want to be with if they do not even know themselves? Taking these four years to figure out one’s best qualities, and one’s areas for improvement can lead to healthier relationships further down the line. It saves heartache and pain for both parties in a relationship to be strong, secure and self-aware.

High school students are already sensitive to pressure from school alone, so adding the pain of a breakup can be very difficult. Some of the most common symptoms include anger and depression, fear, insomnia, and loss of interest in activities. These feelings are almost unavoidable, but one should wait until they have enough maturity to deal with such big emotions in a healthy way. 

People might argue on behalf of the 2%. What if you find your soulmate in high school?  Well, if they are truly your soulmate, they will stick around past high school. Foster that friendship without making permanent decisions, get to know the person on a platonic level first, then see if, in four more years, that person is still the perfect match.   

Are high school relationships fun? Yeah, maybe. But when asked if they are worth it, at this stage of life, I say no. I’m not here to call out one specific relationship, but when looking at high school relationships as a whole, it seems that the benefits of staying single combined with the detriments of a failed relationship make it better to wait.