LEGAL PROMO
Recognising an abusive relationship And knowing that help is available
W
hen we consider domestic abuse, our minds often jump to thoughts of physical violence. We are all familiar with the portrayal in the news and culture of the image of the ‘battered woman’, desperately trying to cover purple bruises with makeup before the school-run, or telling colleagues yet another fracture was caused by a clumsy misstep on the stairs. There is no doubt that physical violence is an extremely prevalent and devastating feature of domestic abuse. It is terrifying that more than half of women killed in the UK die at the hands of their partner or an ex. Yet domestic abuse is a phenomenon that extends far beyond these sorts of cases. It encompasses a much broader range of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviours between people who are, or have 36
read more at darlingmagazine.co.uk winter 21-22
been, intimate partners or family members. This includes coercive control, psychological and emotional abuse, sexual abuse, financial abuse, online abuse, ‘honour’ based abuse and harassment and stalking. Domestic abuse can also happen to anyone, no matter their age, sex, race, sexual orientation or background. It is no surprise, given the physical violence stereotype, that people struggle to confidently identify the signs in their own relationship. Even when they do recognise they are victims, they can feel that their particular circumstances do not warrant the same kind of support and intervention. As a family solicitor, this misconception worries me. All types of domestic abuse are to be taken seriously and there is support available, both legal and non-legal, for those who need it.
