Recognising Domestic Violence

Recognising Signs of an Abusive Relationship:

The biggest warning sign is if they have been in a violent relationship before; violent and abusive people rarely change
They put your friends down and or make it difficult for you to see them
They lose their temper over small things
Verbal abuse like shouting, mocking, name-calling
They have very rigid ideas about the roles of men and women and can't / won't discuss it reasonably
Their mood swings are so erratic that you find yourself constantly trying to assess their mood and only think in terms of their needs
It is difficult for you to get emotional or physical space away from them
They 'grill' you about where you've been and who you were with
They criticise you all the time
They make all the decisions in your relationship and ignore your needs or dismiss them as unimportant

Are You Experiencing or Have You Been Threatened With:

Physical Abuse: This can include punching, slapping, pulling hair, biting, burning, hitting, choking and kicking.
Harassment: This can include being watched, followed, pestered, unwanted letters, unwanted phone calls, or unwanted messages sent through other people.
Economic Abuse: This can include being kept without money, wages, benefits or pension and / or having to account for everything you spend.
Emotional Abuse: This can include being verbally abused, humiliated, constantly blamed for things, put down in front of other people and being kept away from family and friends.
Sexual Abuse: This can include rape, forced vaginal or anal penetration by fingers or other objects, being forced to watch or act out pornography, being spoken to in a sexually degrading way or indecent phone calls.

For More Information:

In An Emergency Always Dial 999