{"id":352,"date":"2020-09-16T08:55:24","date_gmt":"2020-09-16T12:55:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/?p=352"},"modified":"2020-11-03T10:06:19","modified_gmt":"2020-11-03T15:06:19","slug":"what-is-domestic-violence-and-abuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/2020\/09\/16\/what-is-domestic-violence-and-abuse\/","title":{"rendered":"What is domestic violence and abuse?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>When people think of domestic abuse, they often focus on domestic violence. But domestic abuse includes any attempt by one person in an intimate relationship or marriage to dominate and control the other. Domestic violence and abuse are used for one purpose and one purpose only: to gain and maintain total control over you. An abuser doesn\u2019t \u201cplay fair.\u201d An abuser uses fear, guilt, shame, and intimidation to wear you down and keep you under their thumb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/mississaugacriminallawyers.org\/domestic-assault\">Domestic violence and abuse<\/a>&nbsp;do not discriminate. Abuse happens within heterosexual relationships and in same-sex partnerships. It occurs within all age ranges, ethnic backgrounds, and economic levels. And while women are more often victimized, men also experience abuse\u2014especially verbal and emotional. The bottom line is that abusive behavior is never acceptable, whether from a man, woman, teenager, or an older adult. You deserve to feel valued, respected, and safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Domestic abuse often escalates from threats and verbal assault to violence. And while physical injury may pose the most obvious danger, the emotional and psychological consequences of domestic abuse are also severe. Emotionally abusive relationships can destroy your self-worth, lead to anxiety and depression, and make you feel helpless and alone. No one should have to endure this kind of pain\u2014and your first step to breaking free is recognizing that your relationship is abusive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Signs of an abusive relationship<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are many signs of an abusive relationship, and a fear of your partner is the most telling. If you feel like you have to walk on eggshells around them\u2014constantly watching what you say and do in order to avoid a blow-up\u2014chances are your relationship is unhealthy and abusive. Other signs include a partner who belittles you or tries to control you, and feelings of self-loathing, helplessness, and desperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To determine whether your relationship is abusive, answer the questions below. The more \u201cyes\u201d answers, the more likely it is that you\u2019re in an abusive relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Physical and sexual abuse<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Physical abuse occurs when physical force is used against you in a way that injures or endangers you.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Assault\">Physical assault<\/a>&nbsp;or battering is a crime, whether it occurs inside or outside of a family. The police have the power and authority to protect you from a physical attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>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 domestic violence. Furthermore, people whose partners abuse them physically&nbsp;<em>and<\/em>sexually are at a higher risk of being seriously injured or killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Emotional abuse: It\u2019s a bigger problem than you think<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Not all abusive relationships involve physical violence. Just because you\u2019re not battered and bruised doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re not being abused. Many men and women suffer from emotional abuse, which is no less destructive. Unfortunately, emotional abuse is often minimized or overlooked\u2014even by the person experiencing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The aim of emotional abuse is to chip away at your feelings of self-worth and independence\u2014leaving you feeling that there\u2019s no way out of the relationship, or that without your abusive partner, you have nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Emotional abuse includes&nbsp;<\/strong><strong><em>verbal abuse<\/em><\/strong>&nbsp;such as yelling, name-calling, blaming, and shaming. Isolation, intimidation, and controlling behavior are also forms of emotional abuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Abusers who use emotional or psychological abuse<\/strong>&nbsp;often throw in threats of physical violence or other repercussions if you don\u2019t do as they want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The scars of emotional abuse are very real<\/strong>&nbsp;and they run deep. You may think that physical abuse is far worse than&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/blog\/traversing-the-inner-terrain\/201609\/when-is-it-emotional-abuse\">emotional abuse<\/a>, since physical violence can send you to the hospital and leave you with physical wounds. But emotional abuse can be just as damaging\u2014sometimes even more so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">SEEK A LEGAL HELP<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>You will receive all the support that you require from your lawyer and from all other members of our team involved in your case. You will be excellently prepared for all hearings. We will do everything to boost your confidence as well. You will always be welcome to ask questions. Expect to receive detailed answers and full explanations without delay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/mississaugacriminallawyers.org\/\">Domestic Assault Lawyer Mississauga<\/a>&nbsp;will follow the initially set strategy and use their talent and skills to defend you in the best way possible. The focus will be on achieving the goals identified in advance. Rely fully on the hard work, knowledge and determination that the professional will put in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Contact us to receive legal assistance for the domestic assault charges that you face.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When people think of domestic abuse, they often focus on domestic violence. But domestic abuse includes any attempt by one person in an intimate relationship or marriage to dominate and&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/2020\/09\/16\/what-is-domestic-violence-and-abuse\/\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=352"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":353,"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352\/revisions\/353"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westmichiganregional.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}