Friendships and Relationships

This slide deck and companion tip sheet provide information on how to help Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) to understand the importance of healthy friendships and how to help the individuals they support learn about healthy friendships.

A great way to begin making friends is to be part of a group that shares your interests. Using this brainstorming tool, DSPs can help the people they support find enjoyable activities through Internet search and by exploring places in the community.

This brief tip sheet presents five short steps to making friends, and it can be provided to DSPs so that they can discuss these steps with the individuals they support.

Many people are shy or unsure of how to approach a new person. They might lack confidence, because they don’t know what to do or say. DSPs can use this role-playing activity with the individuals they support to practice meeting new people to build up confidence.

DSPs can help the individuals they support understand how to navigate forming healthy close relationships with others. This tip sheet includes information about having the “talk,” information about online dating, and dating do’s and don’ts.