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Domestic Violence
Types and Forms of Abuse
Abuse / domestic violence can take a number of different forms. The most common is physical battering. It can range from slaps, shoving, kicking, throwing a person against the wall or across the room to murder. It usually includes sexual abuse, where the person is forced to have intercourse or take part in some other sexual activity against her will.
Abuse can take the form of psychological battering. The purpose of the psychological battering is to breakdown and destroy the person’s will. It can include constant verbal attacks, threats, shaming, harassment or put-downs. The psychological abuser may isolate the woman from friends and family, cutting off her connections and possible ties for help. He may hide her keys, monitor her daily activities, block her access to money or food, rip her clothes, or her books, destroy her personal possessions, even threaten to kill her is she disobeys him or tries to leave.
The abuse / violence always escalates. That is something that has been shown and proven over and over and over. Without intervention, the violence will escalate until the woman’s life is in danger.