Myths About Domestic Violence

Lawanna Lynn Campbell endured a marriage full of domestic violence, infidelity, crack cocaine addiction, and alcohol abuse. When she was told to keep silent about being abused by her husband, she took matters into her own hands. After 23 years, she eventually escaped and made a new life for herself. Below, Campbell discusses the myths surrounding domestic abuse and their impact as she struggled to break free from a life of pain, shame, and guilt. MYTH Boyfriends and girlfriends sometimes push each other around when they get angry, but it rarely results in anyone getting seriously hurt. When I was 17, my boyfriend went for my throat and choked me in a fit of jealous rage upon learning that I had dated others before we became exclusive. I thought this was an involuntary reflex he could not control. I believed that his outburst showed just how much he really loved me and wanted me for himself. I quickly forgave him after he apologized, and in some morbid way, felt flattered to be loved so much. I later found out that he was very much in control of his actions. He knew exactly what he was doing. People who abuse often use a series of tactics besides violence including threats, intimidation, psychological abuse and isolation to control their partners. And if it happened once it would happen again. And sure enough, that incident was only the beginning of more acts of violence that led to serious injuries throughout our years together. FACT As many as one-third of all high school and college-age young people experience violence in an intimate or dating relationship. Physical abuse  is as common among high school and college-age couples as married couples. Domestic violence is the number one cause of injury to women between the ages of 15-44 in the U.S. – more than car accidents, muggings and rapes combined. And, of the women murdered each year in the U.S., 30% are killed by their current or former husband or boyfriend. MYTH Most people will end a relationship if their boyfriend or girlfriend hits them. After that first incident of abuse, I believed that my boyfriend was truly sorry and that he wouldn’t ever hit me again. I rationalized that it was only this one time. After all, couples often have arguments and fights that are forgiven and forgotten. My parents fought all the time, and I believed that behavior was normal and unavoidable in marriage. My boyfriend would buy me things, take me out, and show me attention and affection in an effort to prove his sincerity, and he promised that he would never hit me again. This is called â€Å"the honeymoon† phase. I believed the lie and within months I married him. FACT Nearly 80% of girls who have been physically abused in their intimate relationships continue to date their abuser after the onset of violence. MYTH If a person is really being abused, it’s easy to just leave. It was extremely complicated and difficult for me to leave my abuser, and there were several factors that delayed and hindered my decision to get away from him. I had a strong religious background and believed it was my obligation to forgive him and to submit to his authority as my husband. This belief kept me living in an abusive marriage. I also believed that even though we weren’t fighting all the time, it really wasn’t that bad. He owned a business, and at one point, was the pastor of a church. We were prosperous, had a beautiful home, drove nice cars, and I enjoyed the status of being the perfect middle-class family. And so, for the sake of money and status, I stayed. Another reason why I stayed was for the sake of the children. I didn’t want my children to be psychologically damaged coming from a broken home. I had been psychologically and emotionally abused for so long that I developed low self-esteem and had a low self-image. He consistently reminded me that no one else would ever love me like he did and that I should’ve been glad that he married me in the first place. He would belittle my physical characteristics and remind me of my shortcomings and faults. I often went along with whatever my husband wanted to do just to avoid a fight and to avoid being left alone. I had my own guilt issues and believed that I was being punished and deserved the misfortune that happened to me. I believed that I could not survive without my husband and was afraid of being homeless and destitute. And even after I left the marriage, I was stalked and almost killed by him. This type of psychological abuse is often ignored by the victims of domestic violence. Since there are no visible scars we think we’re okay, but in fact, the psychological and emotional torments are the ones that have the most lasting impact on our lives even long after the abuser is out of our lives. FACT There are many complicated reasons why it’s difficult for a person to leave an abusive partner. One common reason is fear. Women who leave abusers are at a 75% greater chance of being killed by the abuser than those who stay. Most people who are abused often blame themselves for causing the violence. No one is ever to blame for another person’s violence. Violence is always a choice, and the responsibility is 100% with the person who is violent. It is my desire that we become educated about the warning signs of domestic abuse and encourage women to break the cycle of abuse by breaking the silence. Sources: Barnett, Martinex, Keyson, â€Å"The relationship between violence, social support, and self-blame in battered women,† Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 1996.Jezel, Molidor, and Wright and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, ​Teen Dating Violence Resources Manual, NCADV, Denver, CO, 1996.Levy, B., Dating Violence: Young Women in Danger, The Seal Press, Seattle, WA, 1990. Straus, M.A., Gelles R.J. Steinmetz, S., Behind Closed Doors, Anchor Books, NY, 1980.U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics’ National Crime Victimization Survey, 1995. Uniform Crime Reports, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1991.Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey, U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, August 1995.

Alcohol Use Among Veterans And The Military Essay

Alcohol Use Among Veterans and the Military Alcohol use and abuse is prevalent among members of the United States military as well as among the veteran population. Binge and heavy drinking is commonplace among the military and veterans. Veterans and members of the active duty military face a unique set of challenges when compared to the civilian population. There is a trend of combat exposure leading to a higher risk to abuse alcohol. For over a decade the United States military was involved in combat operations in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). This has lead to a generation of service men and women as well as veterans with a host of physical and mental injuries as a result multiple combat deployments. There are many veterans and active duty personnel suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as traumatic brain injuries (TBI) as a result of their deployment in support of OIF and OEF. There is a link between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumati c brain injuries (TBI) and a higher potential for the abuse of alcohol. Veterans and members of the armed forces deal with a host of psychological injuries related to the stresses of combat which can lead to the abuse of alcohol as a coping mechanism. Veterans and active duty military personnel face unique problems and special considerations when it comes to the abuse of alcohol. There is a drinkingShow MoreRelatedEssay On Military Veterans1027 Words   |  5 PagesMcKinney, Hirsch, Britton (2017) state that the â€Å"disproportionate rate of suicide in the veteran population may be due to various risk factors†, including symptoms of PTSD and depression (p.100). Their study population was comprised of 545 military veterans who completed a Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire indicating a link between higher PTSD related suicide and depression (p. 100). McKinney et al. 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Socioeconomic Status Ses Health And Social Care Essay Free Essays

Socioeconomic position ( SES ) has been studied and proven to hold a direct consequence on general wellness and well-being but what consequence does SES hold on mental wellness? The effects of SES on mental wellness results were outlined in subdivisions of a survey called Socioeconomic Status and Health: The Challenge of the Gradient ( SESSH ) . The SESSH survey states â€Å" Persons higher in the societal hierarchy typically enjoy better wellness than do those below ( Alder et. al 1994 ) , this includes mental wellness and it ‘s all of its related diseases. We will write a custom essay sample on Socioeconomic Status Ses Health And Social Care Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now Several other surveies such as the Childhood Socioeconomic Status Is Associated with Psychosocial Resources in African Americans: The Pittsburgh Healthy Heart Project ( Beatty et. al 2011 ) , conducted by the University of Pittsburg aid to confirm the findings from the SESSH survey done several old ages before. One of the major effects of lower SES position on mental wellness is the deficiency of entree to mental wellness attention. Whether urban or rural the hapless have more trouble in deriving entree to decently trained medical forces and installations to cover with the jobs sing the mental wellness ( Grembowski et. al 2002 ) . The paper, Rural Communities Suffer Poor Mental Health Care ( Association of Schools of Public Health 1974 ) highlights some of the issues unique to the rural hapless in America and the mental wellness issues that surround the community. The current research shows that SES plays a major function in the mental wellness of patients. Major emphasis factors from the effects of lower SES get down to take its toll on the mental wellness of persons populating in high poorness countries ( Leventhal et. al 2003 ) . In the survey Socioeconomic Status and Health: The Challenge of the Gradient it states the â€Å" Socioeconomic position is related to both major depression and depressive symptoms † ( Alder et. al 1994 ) and to an addition of ill will and anti-social activity and suicidal behaviours. ( Alder et. al 1994 ) . SES besides leads to an addition in psychological emphasis that can finally trip greater perceptual experiences of emphasis and negative emotion. These perceptual experiences are known to change neuroendocrine response and assorted other physiological alterations ( Alder et. al 1994 ) . The deficiency of entree to proper mental wellness attention is a major factor in the long term wellness results of tho se in lower SES groups ( Grembowski et. al 2002 ) . Further back uping the survey Socioeconomic Status and Health: The Challenge of the Gradient, the survey Childhood Socioeconomic Status Is Associated with Psychosocial Resources in African Americans, shows that SES is non merely a factor in finding mental wellness but besides has an consequence on the ability to entree the household and community support in early childhood might hold played a possible mitigating factor ( Beatty et. al 2011 ) . The survey shows, that in African American topics, the intercession of positive household and community involvement early in childhood could positively impact subsequently psychological wellness but that lower SES general prohibits the positive household and community support demand to antagonize the degrees of emphasis and hapless self-perception in lower SES persons ( Beatty et. al 2011 ) . The article, Traveling to Opportunity: an Experimental Study of Neighborhood Effects on Mental Health, farther address the thoughts that community and poo rness, cardinal facets of SES, have on mental wellness results ( Leventhal et. al 2003 ) . Families that moved from lower SES position vicinities to higher 1s had a lessening in the presence and badness of depression and other psychological issues ( Leventhal et. al 2003 ) . The articles, through the usage of studies and long term patient surveies, are able to demo the direct effects of lower SES on psychological wellness. The information shows that long term exposure to the emphasis of lower SES leads to several types of psychological upset including depression, feelings of lower dignity and assorted other clinical issues including terrible alcohol addiction and drug dependence ( Alder et. al 1994 ) . The surveies did an first-class occupation of showcasing the issues affect lower SES groups but could hold been more convincing in their methodological analysiss. The information from the research validates the fact of lower SES straight affect psychological wellness but fail to take into history several variables which would let for incredulity. Each of the articles fails to turn to whether the psychological issues are straight linked to lower SES from the deficiency of instruction of approximately positive life style picks and deficiency of instruction a bout entree to wellness attention, is the higher incidents of mental unwellness merely because the hapless have less instruction on healthy life styles and how to seek intervention. The consequences could be strengthened by utilizing greater cross subdivisions of the lower SES communities, over longer periods of clip and supplying basic instruction on how to entree intervention to see if mental wellness issues are genuinely related to SES or if there are other factors that contribute. With the exclusion of Traveling to Opportunity: an Experimental Study of Neighborhood Effects on Mental Health, none of the surveies attempted to see if the conditions were reversible by taking the topics form the lower SES environment. If remotion of the topic from the environment produces clear positive consequences in a big survey group you could more easy find that SES is a clear factor in the patients ‘ wellness. How to cite Socioeconomic Status Ses Health And Social Care Essay, Essay examples