Domestic Violence Prevention, Intervention, and Healing
Need Help: National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-7233 1-800-787-3224 (TTY) or 9-1-1
Domestic Violence is behavior used by one person in an intimate relationship to control the other. It can take many forms, including physical violence, sexual abuse, verbal attacks, emotional abuse, and threats. It often escalates over time. Once a partner hits the other, it usually happens again. Domestic violence crosses economic, racial, age, religious, national, marital status, and gender lines; anyone can be a victim. There is a domestic violence cycle, and, once it begins, it usually continues until someone intervenes or dies.
Interesting Statistics:
Women are far more likely to be abused than their male partners. A 2008 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study found that 1 in 4 women in the United States will experience violence by an intimate partner at some point in her life. Three women a day are murdered in the United States by a male intimate.
Three-fourths of domestic abuse in the home is perpetrated by men. Men who as children witnessed their parents’ domestic violence were twice as likely to abuse their own wives than sons of nonviolent parents.
Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women—more than car accidents, muggings, and rapes combined.Studies suggest that up to 10 million children witness some form of domestic violence annually.
Nearly 1 in 5 teenage girls who have been in a relationship said a boyfriend threatened violence or self-harm if presented with a breakup.
Every 9 seconds in the US a woman is assaulted or beaten.
Everyday in the US, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends.
Domestic Violence Takes Many Forms
Emotional Abuse: This form of abuse is about robbing an intimate partner of his or her sense of self-worth. It includes: Calling the victim names, damaging his or her reputation, belittling, blaming, shaming, stalking, destroying his or her belongings, isolating the person from anyone who would show love and support, including family and friends, financial abuse, withholding basic life necessities- food, clothing, shelter, and job harassment. Threats on your life or loved ones, including pets are also forms of emotional abuse.
Physical Abuse: Physical abuse is the use of physical force against someone in a way that injures or endangers that person. Slapping, hitting, kicking, punching, pushing are all forms of physical abuse (from minor to major its still abuse). Domestic emotional abuse escalates to the threat of sexual or physical harm. The threats may be verbal or include weapons (any item used to cause pain) to intensify the fear the abused person experiences.
Sexual Abuse: Any situation in which you are forced to participate in unwanted, unsafe, or degrading sexual activity is sexual abuse. Forced sex, even by a spouse or intimate partner with whom you also have consensual sex, is an act of aggression and violence.