Domestic Violence Awareness Month
10 October 2020
Saturday 10 October is World Mental Health Day and the Covid pandemic together with the shadow domestic abuse pandemic has shown us how important it is that we recognise the importance of looking after our mental health.
This year, we are keen to promote the message that it is not taboo to discuss either domestic abuse or mental health and that our society needs to discuss them. We will not tackle domestic abuse without engaging with survivors, perpetrators, and the public and we will not improve our mental health without engaging with one another. The more we talk, the more we ask for help, and the more we offer help, the better our chances of tackling both of these societal challenges. Through our partnership with employers, we are supporting more to have these conversations and to give employers the policies they need to ensure that employees are able to access the support that they need.
This World Mental Health Day let’s banish harmful attitudes of ‘taboo subjects’ and join the conversation. Please also join the EIDA today to help drive this conversation forward.
Domestic abuse can have a huge effect on your mental health
Research from the Mental Health Foundation suggests that women experiencing domestic abuse are more likely to suffer from a mental health condition and that women with a mental health condition are more likely to experience domestic abuse.
Domestic abuse is associated with depression, anxiety, PTSD, and substance abuse. This is not surprising considering many survivors live with the impact of domestic abuse for some time before getting help. According to SafeLives, high-risk survivors live with domestic abuse for over 2 years before getting help, and medium-risk survivors for 3 years. On average, people experience 50 incidents of abuse before seeking effective help. This sustained abuse cannot but have a significant impact on one’s self-esteem and mental health, and it is important that we recognise the importance of mental health for domestic abuse survivors.
Poor mental health can be used to abuse survivors further
Domestic abuse is not the only cause of poor mental health, and for those who already experience some form of mental health condition, this can be used to abuse them and isolate them further. Unfortunately, there is still some stigma attached to experiencing mental ill-health, particularly when people cannot understand why it is that they experience depression or anxiety, or another mental health condition. There is still the old-fashioned perception that depression stems from a traumatic event, but for many sufferers of depression, this is not necessarily the case.
Abusers are able to convince their victims that no one else would understand them or that they wouldn’t believe them, or perhaps threaten to disclose their mental health condition to an employer or family. They might also withhold medication, prevent professional help from being sought, or use the condition to further emotionally or verbally abuse their victim.
Mental ill-health is not a source of shame
We all have mental health in the same way that we all have our physical health. Just as eating well and exercise can help support our physical health, feeling safe and loved can support our mental health. There will always be other factors that influence our health, physical and mental, but suffering from a mental health condition is no more a source of shame than being diagnosed with a form of cancer.
We must all recognise the importance of our mental health to our physical health and recognise that depression or anxiety, or any other mental health condition are not a sign of weakness, not something to be ashamed of or embarrassed about, and is something that can be supported by health professionals as well as family and friends.
If you are experiencing domestic abuse and/or mental health problems, we encourage you to reach out. There are many organisations who are able to support you. As always, you can find a list of domestic abuse support services on our website and the NHS website has a list of support services for mental health.
You can keep up to date with the work we do and the news stories that we post on LinkedIn, Twitter, and on Facebook.
Mental health conditions are as much a consequence of #domesticabuse as they are a tool for perpetrators to commit more abuse.
On #WorldMentalHealthDay we want to reinforce the message that domestic abuse is all our business. #YouAreNotAlone #EIDA
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mental-health-helplines/
Mental health conditions are as much a consequence of domestic abuse as they are a tool for perpetrators to commit more abuse.
On World Mental Health Day, we want to reinforce the message that domestic abuse is all our business. We need to get rid of the taboos around discussing domestic abuse and mental health if we are to tackle the challenges facing society.
#YouAreNotAlone #EIDA
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mental-health-helplines/
Mental health conditions are as much a consequence of domestic abuse as they are a tool for perpetrators to commit more abuse.
On World Mental Health Day, we want to reinforce the message that domestic abuse is all our business. We need to get rid of the taboos around discussing domestic abuse and mental health if we are to tackle the challenges facing society.
Open, supportive workplaces that reject attitudes that experiencing domestic abuse or a mental health condition, such as depression, is shameful or a private matter are vital if we are to support employees. We can tackle domestic abuse and mental health problems, but only through dialogue and understanding.
#YouAreNotAlone #EIDA
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mental-health-helplines/