Domestic Violence/Abuse Awareness Month

Only 70% of Domestic Violence is ever reported.

With all of the excitement around Halloween and Breast Cancer Awareness Month, it’s easy to forget that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. What is domestic violence? The definition may surprise you. Although most think of physical abuse being the only thing that ‘counts’ as domestic violence, the lasting impression it has on its victims cuts much deeper.

Domestic Violence Defined

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), ‘Domestic violence is the willful intimidation, physical assault, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another,’ it is important to continue the definition, ‘It includes physical violence, sexual violence, threats, and emotional abuse. The frequency and severity of domestic violence can vary dramatically.’

Who is Affected and How?

Domestic violence brings out the worst in ones character, and may include injuries, trauma and has the possibility of being fatal. Often times people think they are not susceptible to it, but domestic violence and abuse does not discriminate. ‘Domestic violence is an epidemic affecting individuals in every community, regardless of age, economic status, sexual orientation, gender, race, religion or nationality (NCADV).’

Different types of domestic abuse and violence include acts of sexual assault, stalking and homicide, producing physical, mental and economic effects.

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